Ombudsman Remulla: DFA should not have authority over passports

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Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla on Saturday renewed his criticism of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), saying passport issuance should not be under the agency's authority.

Remulla previously proposed outsourcing visa issuance to a third party, a suggestion that the DFA rejected.

“Ang visa giving, tsaka ang passport, ang passport, that is all the function of immigration,” Remulla said on his dzRH radio program.

(Visa issuance and passports should all be under the functions of the Bureau of Immigration.)

“Dapat passporting, pag-isipan na natin. Huwag na natin ilagay sa DFA… Mas mabuti ‘yan, yung Passport Act, we should repeal it and just go back to the very basic. To guard our borders, it has to be immigration,” he added.

(We should rethink the passport issuance process. Let us not put it under the DFA. It would be better to repeal the Passport Act and go back to the basics. Border protection should be handled by immigration.)

Remulla said that in some European countries, the police grant visa extensions because the matter falls under law enforcement.

He also raised concerns over alleged cases of fake Filipinos obtaining legitimate Philippine passports, while genuine Filipino citizens struggle to secure passport appointments, with some having to travel long distances to get their documents.

The Ombudsman again raised concerns over Chinese travelers overstaying in the Philippines under the country's visa-free entry policy.

While acknowledging the need to support the tourism sector, Remulla said the policy also raised security concerns involving China.

Remulla maintained that passport and visa issuance should be treated as law enforcement matters.

“Ang function talaga ng DFA ngayon in this day and age, number one is diplomacy. Number two is assistance to Filipinos. The rest, forget it. Wala na,” Remulla said.

(The DFA's primary function in this day and age is diplomacy. Second is providing assistance to Filipinos. The rest, forget it. There is no need for anything else.)

GMA News Online has sought comment from the DFA and will update this story once it responds. —VBL, GMA News