Rude Malaysians stopped from entering Manila
Published on: Tuesday, November 28, 2023
By: Nikko Fabian
(PNA file photo)
Kota Kinabalu: Three Malaysians who threw tantrums when questioned by immigration officers at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport were stopped from entering Manila on Friday.
The Bureau of Immigration (BI) identified them as Tan Hoong Kiat, 35, and female companions Lim Fong Teng, 31, and Khoo Seok Hun, 30, after they landed aboard a Cathay Pacific flight from Hongkong.
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They were alleged to have hurled abuses at the immigration officers who requested to present their return tickets, which they did not have.
The BCIU (Border Control and Intelligence Unit) said while the immigration supervisors on duty were explaining the need to show their plane tickets, the passengers shouted expletives and refused to calm down.
They were booked on the first available flight to their port of origin. They would also be banned from entering the Philippines.
“Foreigners who come here should display respect and courtesy to persons of authority of their host country. Their stay here is a privilege and not a right. Hence, they should not malign and insult our immigration officers,” the BI chief said in a statement.
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Under existing rules, foreign tourists must procure and present their return tickets to BI officers at the port of entry. Failure to do so can be a ground to exclude them for being improperly documented aliens.
The BI may also deny entry to those who are rude and discourteous when being processed and interviewed by airport officers.
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Meanwhile, over 100 companies are under scrutiny by the BI verification and compliance division for submission of spurious documents in their visa applications.
“We have relayed the initial findings to the SOJ (Secretary of Justice) this October. This is a continuing audit, and have already initiated the cancellation of the visas for those aliens petitioned by fake companies,” Tansingco said.
“We are one with the Department of Justice in our mutual desire to put an end to illicit practices that abuse the visa issuance system and likewise see the need to reorganise the way the Philippine government issues visas to foreign nationals both in and out the country.”
Foreign nationals are suspected to use the services of unscrupulous firms, following raids that uncovered scam hubs and prostitution dens posing as legitimate companies.
If proven that they are patronising fake companies, the foreigners would be deported, barred from entry, and included in the blacklist. The accreditation of liaison officers submitting fake applications may also be revoked.
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