Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, October 21) — Lawmakers renewed calls for stricter safeguards against the illegal entry of Chinese nationals following information that the bribe money these foreigners paid may have reached ₱40 billion, and those as young as 35 years old are being allowed to retire in the country.
Opposition Senator Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan called the influx of Chinese nationals as “soft invasion” and urged the Department of National Defense and Armed Forces of the Philippines to take action.
“DND, AFP, and the military intelligence should find out the national security implications of this ‘soft invasion’,” Pangilinan said in a statement. He urged the Department of Justice (DOJ) to form an inter-agency task force to ensure the immediate deportation of foreigners who have bribed their way into the country and put an end to the so-called pastillas scheme.
The bribery scheme is called “pastillas” because the grease money would be hidden in rolled bond paper like the wrapping for the milk candy. In a Senate hearing on Tuesday, Senator Risa Hontiveros said corrupt immigration officers pocketed a total of ₱30 billion under this scheme.
The remaining ₱10 billion in her estimate came from the visa-upon-arrival policy for Chinese visitors and other rackets.
Pangilinan said all immigration authorities involved should be held liable. The Bureau of Immigration is an agency under the DOJ.
When the pastillas scheme hogged headlines in February, Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said the modus was being investigated and all foreigners found to have entered the country with the help of this scheme would be deported.
In a fresh statement on Tuesday, Guevarra said, “those who smear the dignity of their public office will continue to be vigorously investigated and prosecuted.” The justice chief, however, cast doubts on the P40 billion amount raised by Hontiveros.
“I suppose the amount of ₱40 billion was extrapolated on the basis of the testimony of certain witnesses,” Guevarra said.
“Bribery and corruption (such as the ‘pastillas’ scheme), by their very nature, are often done clandestinely and without any paper trail, so estimates as to their magnitude remain in the realm of mere possibilities,” he added.
Meanwhile, Senator Nancy Binay urged the Philippine Retirement Authority (PRA), a body under the Department of Tourism, to implement a stricter vetting process to prevent foreign nationals from exploiting the special resident retiree visas that allow them to stay in the country indefinitely.
“It’s high time to review the policy na 35 years old ka lang ay puwede ka na mag-retire dito sa Pilipinas kasi ang kailangan lang po ng magre-retire ay either mag-deposit siya ng US$50,000 sa bangko, or bumili ng condo unit worth ₱2.5 million at puwede nang mag-retire dito,” Binay pointed out in a separate statement.
[Translation: It’s high time to review the policy that 35-year-old foreigners are allowed to retire in the Philippines because all it takes is a deposit of US$50,000 in the bank, or to buy a condo unit worth ₱2.5 million.]
Data from the PRA shows that Chinese nationals comprise the highest number of foreign retirees in the Philippines, with over 27,000 them allowed to permanently reside in the country. They are followed by Koreans at 14,000, and Indians at 6,000.
