MANILA, Philippines —
On Thursday, the Bureau of Immigration (BI) disclosed that they have discovered a plan where foreigners adopt false Filipino personas to set up enterprises and potentially hire unauthorized employees in Mindanao.
Following this, the BI arrested five Chinese citizens during two distinct operations: one involved an illegal immigrant “running” a hardware shop listed under what appears to be a non-existent Filipino resident in Davao del Sur; another operation targeted four people who were employed unlawfully at a chemical facility located in North Cotabato. The said factory was supposedly owned by a Filipino individual but is believed to actually belong to a Chinese national residing in Manila.
Labeling the scheme as a “troubling development,” Immigration Commissioner Joel Anthony Viado cautioned that fake documents might also be used for spying purposes.
“These papers and altered identification records might be employed by outsiders who have [sinister] motives and could potentially be misused by undercover agents infiltrating our community by posing as locals,” he stated.
READ:
Adiong: Those issuing counterfeit Philippine birth certificates are linked to an extensive network.
READ:
Government blocks 1,600 birth certificates wrongly acquired by non-citizens.
Nonexistent owner
On March 20, the Bureau of Immigration, working alongside the Philippine Army and local police forces, apprehended Bangdie Pan, who goes by the alias Ditdit, a 50-year-old Chinese citizen, in Digos City, located in Davao del Sur.
Pan was arrested due to violations of Philippine immigration regulations during an operation backed by the Army’s 39th Infantry Battalion, the 1002nd Brigade, the 10th Infantry Division, the Philippine National Police, and governmental intelligence agents in Region 11.
Based on the BI statement, the foreign national was actively running a hardware store that is officially registered under a purported Filipino citizen, whose identity is currently being looked into.
” Records showed that Pan had a work visa issued for a firm based in Pasig City, yet she was discovered performing duties outside her authorized scope in Davao del Sur,” the agency stated.
Staff members at the hardware store allegedly confessed that the claimed Filipino proprietor does not actually exist and that the establishment’s licenses were acquired through fraudulent papers.
After four days, agents from BI Intelligence, working alongside several governmental organizations, apprehended four Chinese citizens at a chemical production facility in M’lang, located in North Cotabato.
The people identified were Zhongyi Tang, aged 62; Tianbei Wu, 51 years old; Dezhen Liu, also 62, and Wang Lianxu, who is 53.
The BI mentioned that they acquired birth certificates and paperwork indicating that Liu had falsely presented himself as a Filipino.
The agency’s probe also revealed that the firm was registered under a Filipina, however, workers at the plant stated they hadn’t laid eyes on her ever since the business started operations.
The BI stated, “Employees at the plant acknowledged that the actual owner is a Chinese national residing in Manila.”
The five individuals from China are now facing charges related to deportation.
Widespread problem
Viado has pushed for more stringent rules governing the issuance of Filipino identity papers and documentation to curb potential misuse by undocumented individuals, an issue that came to light last year amid Senate investigations into the recently prohibited Philippine offshore gambling enterprises (POGOs).
In July 2024, the NBI office in Davao disclosed the discovery of nearly 200 forged birth certificates that were provided to Chinese citizens by the civil registry of Santa Cruz, Davao del Sur during the years 2018 and 2019.
NBI Director Jaime Santiago subsequently revealed that as many as 1,200 Chinese citizens were issued birth certificates by the Santa Cruz local civil registry from 2016 onwards. This number is six times greater than what the agency initially reported.
It is alleged that these counterfeit papers allowed individuals from abroad to partake in actions reserved solely for Filipino citizens, such as buying property, establishing enterprises, and even seeking elected positions, similar to what was seen with former mayor Alice Guo of Bamban, Tarlac, who is suspected to be a Chinese national and has been arrested due to her involvement in unlawful Pogo ventures.
Suspected spies
Previously, the government had shown worry over the accounts regarding the existence of Chinese spies within the nation.
In January, the NBI apprehended five alleged Chinese spies accused of keeping an eye on the operations of the Philippine Coast Guard and the Philippine Navy in Palawan, particularly focusing on the supply efforts for forces stationed in the West Philippine Sea.
In the subsequent month, the NBI apprehended two additional Chinese nationals alongside three Filipinos on charges of espionage.
The NBI stated that its cybercrime division along with a specialized task force was notified regarding unusual cars equipped with devices for intercepting messages. These vehicles have been spotted near the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine National Police headquarters, as well as around Malacañang and various governmental buildings within Metro Manila.