De Lima revives deportation order on Chinese fugitive Wang Bo

Justice Secretary Leila de Lima has issued a resolution reinstating the Bureau of Immigration’s (BI) summary deportation order against Chinese fugitive Wang Bo.

De Lima, in a resolution dated June 8, set aside the May 21 resolution of the BI’s Board of Commissioners reversing an earlier deportation order and releasing the fugitive from BI custody, and ruled in favor of Wang’s deportation.

However, the implementation of the De Lima deportation order has been held in abeyance pending an investigation into allegations that a P400-million bribe was paid to prevent Wang’s deportation and other suspicious circumstances surrounding the issue, including the delay in the implementation, and eventual reversal, of the deportation order.

Wang Bo’s case has gained media attention over the past few weeks mainly because of allegations that a P400-million bribe was paid to prevent his deportation to China.

Last Tuesday, the House committee on good governance and public accountability launched an investigation into the controversy, summoning members of the BI’s Board of Commissioners, following a newspaper report that alleged that Wang Bo was used to raise funds for the House leadership to use in bribing lawmakers for support of the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL).

Immigration Commissioner Siegfred Mison at the House hearing denied having received any bribe for the release of Wang Bo.

He also denied that any member of the House was involved in the deportation case of a Chinese fugitive.

Mison claimed that he had recommended Wang Bo’s deportation but that his decision was blocked by two associate immigration commissioners who argued that Wang should not be deported to China as he had committed a crime in the Philippines.

The bureau subsequently issued an order releasing Wang Bo from immigration custody.

The Standard newspaper reported that P440 million had been allocated to pay off 292 lawmakers in the lower chamber—or P1.5 million for each lawmaker—for their vote for the BBL.

The report said the funds came from Wang Bo who allegedly paid the immigration bureau P100 million to secure his release after the bureau had ordered his deportation.–Tina G. Santos