President Rodrigo Duterte ordered the relief of all officials and employees of the Bureau of Immigration (BI) who are allegedly involved in the so-called “pastillas” scheme at the airport.
Presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo made the announcement, adding that the President considered the anomaly as a grave form of corruption that cannot be tolerate by the government. Panelo also said that the present situation in the immigration bureau will be taken up in the next Cabinet meeting.
The “pastillas” scheme was exposed by opposition Senator Risa Hontiveros in a Senate hearing early this week. It allegedly involves airport and immigration personnel who supposedly receive kickbacks in exchange for the easy entry of Chinese people into the country. Hontiveros said the scam could reached a total of P10 billion.
