Senate body recommends random foreigner ID checks in high-risk areas

This handout photo taken and released on August 22, 2024 by the National Capital Region Police Office-Public Information Office (NCRPO-PIO) shows policemen watching as employees of a Chinese-run scam farm cover their faces during a raid at an office tower in Manila. FILE PHOTO/Agence France-Presse

MANILA, Philippines — There is a need for the Philippine National Police (PNP) to regularly implement “Oplan Sita” on foreigners at checkpoints, especially in kidnapping-prone areas identified by local authorities, according to a Senate report.

This recommendation was contained in a 40-page report prepared by the Senate Committee on Public and Order and Dangerous Drugs that investigated the spate of kidnapping incidents in the country.

According to its proposal,  police officers would be allowed “to inspect and verify the identification of random foreigners, especially in the identified kidnapping-prone areas by local territorial units.”

The panel also recommended that the PNP-Anti-Kidnapping Group undergo foreign language training courses, including Chinese and Malay.

READ: NCRPO mulls ‘Oplan Sita’ for foreigners, cites spike in crimes by non-citizens

It likewise sought a review of the implementation of firearms law “to ensure that foreigners would not be able to hold and use firearms” and a thorough study on the benefits of reviving the government’s visa upon arrival policy .

All these and other recommended administrative and legislative actions were in line with the committee’s findings that  linked several kidnapping incidents and other crimes to  the Philippine offshore gaming operators (Pogos).

“Our country seems to have become a sanctuary for Chinese gamblers,” the panel  lamented, as it likened Pogos to a large-scale bookie that facilitates the betting in games.

READ: Marcos bans Pogo, cites ‘disorder’ it caused PH

“In dire need to fund programs of the government, we picked a pack and dealt the cards,” it further said.

The committee also found it alarming “that these Chinese foreigners consider our streets the playground for their thug-like activities.”

“As if they are saying that because they bring a lot of money into the country, they are above the law and can do whatever they please,” it pointed out.

But is it all worth it? the panel asked.

“The Philippines may have pushed its luck too far in accommodating POGOs,” it said. “ Our government must now pull all the tricks it has left in its bag to win against the social ills that come with gambling.”

“It is an opportune time to show the world that the Philippine Government does not fold to organized crimes—we always go ALL IN against them,” the committee further said.

President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. has  already ordered the immediate ban of all Pogos, citing  the “disorder” it has caused the society.