Following the revelation of a “pastillas” scheme against the Bureau of Immigration (BI), Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo reiterated that the Duterte administration will not let any anomaly or violation escape the rule of law.
”Any violation, any transgression, any anomaly, the Palace frowns on it and will act on it if there are complaints formally filed before its office… The record of the administration speaks for itself. It never turns a blind eye on anything that concerns governance,” Panelo said.
”Look at the VFA issue, despite all odds, he decided to cut it off, that supposed to have very significant implications according to critics and supporters of the VFA, but it didn’t stop the president from abrogating it,” he added.
Aside from the “pastillas” scheme, some Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGO) have been dragged to issues such as tax evasion and prostitution.
Panelo also assured the concerned government agencies are now looking into it.
“Well, if those will be proven that there is something wrong with the operations of POGO, then the government has to do something about it. Until such time, the presumption is they are performing regular task in accordance with the law,” he said.
“Sabi nga ni Presidente, ‘there is no scared cow in this government’. If it’s against the interest of the people and general welfare, I’ll stop it. This is the kind of President we have,” he added.
In a separate statement, the BI said they are now investigating the issue.
The NAIA terminal heads and the chief of the Travel and Control and Enforcement were also relieved from duty, pending the results of the inquiry.
”Although hindi po malinaw kung ano pong escorting service iyon at kung related ba iyon dito. Dahil ito pong expose in Senator Hontiveros was very detailed, and ang mga kawani po natin is ngayon lang talaga nakita ýung ganitong kadetalye na mga modus which we are looking at kung may link ba ito sa previous, kasi noong mga nakaraang taon po marami na po tayong kinasuhan at pinatanggal po na immigration personnel,” BI Spokerpeson Dana Sandoval said. – Report from Mela Lesmoras
