Senator Win Gatchalian (Noy Morcoso / INQUIRER.net file photo)
MANILA, Philippines – It reportedly costs P300,000 for Chinese nationals to illegally obtain a valid Philippine birth certificate, passport, and driver’s license, said Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian on Friday, citing his sources within the Chinese community.
“Sinabi nila sa akin na ang running price pala para makakuha ng birth certificate — kasama na [ang] passport, kasama na ang driver’s license is P300,000,” Gatchalian told reporters.
(They told me that the going rate for a birth certificate, including [the] passport, and driver’s license, is P300,000.)
“So merong mga ganon na naglalakad. Magbibigay ka ng P300,000, bibigyan ka nya ng birth certificate, bibigyan ka niya ng passport, bibigyan ka niya ng driver’s license, at iba pa. Kumbaga lalakarin [na] lang nila lahat yun,” he said.
(So some process that. For P300,000, you will get a birth certificate, a passport, a driver’s license, and so on. It’s like they’ll just process it all.
Gatchalian’s revelation came after the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) disclosed that it uncovered “close to 200 falsified birth certificates” issued to Chinese nationals from 2018 to 2019 in Santa Cruz, Davao del Sur.
According to the senator, NBI’s disclosure in itself is “very concerning,” which may indicate a syndicate is actively issuing valid Philippine documents to Chinese nationals.
Gatchalian said there’s a possibility that these erring individuals are within the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) itself or the local government of Santa Cruz.
“Once may birth certificate na, madali nang kunin yung iba. So yun ang narinig ko sa Chinese community na umiikot ngayon dahil nga lumabas na ito. Pumutok itong issue na ito eh, so apparently, meron pala talagang ganyan na modus [kung] gustong kumuha ng pekeng birth certificate,” said Gatchalian.
(Once you have a birth certificate, getting other documents is easy. So that’s what I heard in the Chinese community since this came out. This issue blew up, so apparently there really is such a modus operandi for obtaining a fake birth certificate.)
Nearly 200 Alice Guos?
In the same news conference, Gatchalian said that NBI’s revelation might be just another case similar to embattled Bamban Mayor Alice Guo, who had been scrutinized after senators raised questions about her citizenship.
The PSA earlier admitted that Guo’s birth certificate is “irregular,” adding that it has officially endorsed to the Office of Solicitor General the cancellation of the suspended mayor’s birth document.
“Ito in effect 200 Alice Guo ito eh. I remember na pumutok ito because merong isang Chinese na gustong kumuha ng passport. Noong iniinterview na ng DFA [ay] hindi na nya masago-sagot at hindi rin siya marunong magtagalog,” said Gatchalian.
(This is in effect 200 Alice Guos. I remember that this issue went out because a Chinese wanted a passport. When interviewed by the DFA, [he] couldn’t answer and speak in Tagalog.)
Meanwhile, the senator said he has filed a resolution seeking to look closely into the matter. He specifically urged PSA to “think about this and provide us with solutions.”
“Dahil nag uumpisa ito sa PSA eh at ang set up kasi natin, PSA ang national repository pero local government units ang may hawak sa civil registry. Eh meron tayong 1,700 plus na local government units so just imagine — ang dami mong pwedeng puntahan para mag file ka ng birth certificate,” he pointed out.
(Because it starts with PSA and because of our setup, PSA is the national repository, but local government units handle the civil registry. We have 1,700 plus local government units so just imagine — the number of places you can go to file a birth certificate.)
In the end, Gatchalian said there is a need to settle the issues surrounding the country’s birth certificate system; otherwise, the dilemma will not be resolved.