Bureau of Immigration (BI) Commissioner Jaime Morente expressed his hope for a better 2022 for international travel.
Morente stated that following the aggressive vaccination campaign of the government, he sees that the recovery of the travel sector will come very soon.
“While the Omicron variant and the devastation brought about by typhoon Odette slowed down our recovery, we see better numbers as compared to last year,” said Morente. The number of international travelers during Christmas eve and Christmas day doubled from last year despite travel restrictions, so we’re expecting an uptrend in international travelers this year,” he added.
He added that he is very hopeful that along with the rebound of international travel, the improvement of the BI will continue.
“We have seen numerous improvements with the BI, which were derailed by issues that we have faced,” said Morente. “However, we continued to push for improvements to leave a legacy of a better BI,” he said.
Morente shared that the BI sees the new year as a new beginning, following the hiring of numerous new immigration officers that are expected to service the traveling public this year.
It can be recalled that a batch of 99 immigration officers recently graduated from the Philippine Immigration Academy were deployed on time for the holidays. Another batch of 195 immigration officers have their applications underway, and are expected to be deployed by the first quarter of 2022.
“We have imparted our core values of patriotism, integrity, and professionalism through rigorous trainings in our academy. We highlighted trainings on personality development, and ensured that our officers remain service-oriented to be better public servants,” said Morente.
He mentioned that the agency’s continued BI-CARES program is part of the values imparted in the new immigration officers. The BI-CARES program focuses on the deployment of a service-oriented troop of immigration officers who are able to enforce immigration laws while creating a more enviable environment for travelers, local and foreign alike, using our international ports.
“BI CARES stands for courtesy accountability, responsibility, efficiency, and service,” said Morente. “It keeps our officers in check of their role as public servants, and as professionals,” he added.
Morente hopeful for a better BI in 2022
Morente said that the officers will continue the BI’s mandate of implementing immigration laws for arriving foreign nationals, as well as in protecting departing Filipinos against human trafficking and illegal recruitment.
“Our firm drive against illegal aliens, human trafficking, and illegal recruitment remains,” said Morente. “We have selected the crème de la crème of applicants applying as immigration officers, hence we expect only the best quality of service from them,” he stated.
Morente also highlighted that the public may report irregular activities, as well as illegal aliens, directly to him via his office’s Facebook page.
“The Facebook page Immigration Helpline PH serves as a direct line to my office to report matters pertaining to the Bureau. As in the past, any irregularity will be acted upon swiftly, with an iron hand,” warned Morente.
The Immigration Helpline PH, he shared, also allows concerned citizens to report the presence of illegal aliens anonymously.
“The year 2022 is a new beginning for the Bureau, despite the challenges brought about by the pandemic, we are confident that this year will be better,” said Morente.
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