Ombudsman: 1% of Chinese visa-free tourists overstay in Philippines

Around 1% of Chinese tourists who entered the Philippines visa-free did not go back home, according to Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla.

Speaking on his radio show on DZRH, Remulla commented on the Department of Tourism’s request to the Department of Foreign Affairs to extend visa-free entry for Chinese nationals.

“Pinag-aralan na namin iyan. Yung visa-free na yan, more or less 1%, during the first two months, yung hindi na bumalik sa China. Kung 200,000 yan, may 2,000 kaagad yan. Yung nandito, TNT (tago nang tago) na yan,” Remulla said.

(We studied that. That visa-free, more or less, 1% of them, during the first two months, did not return to China. So if that is 200,000, that is already 2,000 TNT.)

Remulla reiterated earlier calls to outsource visa processing to a third-party, as the Department of Foreign Affairs was making money off of issuing visas through travel agencies.

“Ang DFA, kumikita diyan ang DFA, yung travel agencies, nagp-process ng mga visa. Ang nagsabi sa akin niyan, a very big Fil-Chi businessman in China… Nag-reklamo siya sa akin, when I was Secretary of Justice, kaya nag-away na kami niyan ni Tess Lazaro. Harap-harapan ko sinabi sa kanya ‘yan. I’m not doing this behind her back. I said it to her face,” Remulla said.

GMA News Online has reached out to the DFA for a response to Remulla’s newest comments, but it has yet to reply as of posting time.

(The DFA, the DFA is making money there, the travel agencies that process the visa. The one who told me that is a very big Fil-Chi businessman in China… he complained to me when I was Secretary of Justice, so me and Tess Lazaro have fought over that. I said it to her directly. I’m not doing this behind her back. I said it to her face.)

The same businessman supposedly told Remulla that it was easier to get a US visa for business than to get a visa in the Philippines for the same reason.

The DFA has already previously thumbed down Remulla’s calls to outsource the visa-processing to a third party. The agency also reiterated that it had no tolerance for corruption.

“The visa fees collected are pursuant to applicable laws and regulations, including the prescribed Schedule of Fees. The DFA does not tolerate corruption and remains committed to accountability, transparency, and utmost professionalism in the delivery of public service,” the agency said. —VAL, GMA News