Reconsideration sought on new DFA passport processing policy

CEBU, Philippines - Different travel and tour agencies are asking the Department of Foreign Affairs to reconsider its directive disallowing them to process passport applications effective next month.

Travel and tour operators said that there are about 68 accredited liaison officers who stand to lose their jobs because of the directive. The directive would allegedly result in the eventual downfall of the travel industry.

The DFA however dismissed it saying that the fear of the operators will not happen because they can just reassign the affected liaison officers to other works considering that the industry has a lot to offer.

Travel agencies received on May 7 a directive from DFA Regional Consular Office in Cebu giving them until June 30, 2012 to file the passport applications of their clients because they are making the process exclusively for the department after the said date.

Cecile Sa-a, president of Cebu Association of Tour Operators, said that aside from revenue losses, agencies are more concerned of the employment status of their liaison officers and the families they support.

She added that there has been no consultation done among the affected parties upon the issuance of the memorandum.

She further said that they already sought help from Philippine Travel Agencies Association to communicate and meet up with the officials from the national office of DFA to reconsider the decision but have not received any feedback until now.

Sa-a admitted that the travel industry is not doing well as a whole and once the directive will be implemented, it will create a huge impact among the agencies.

The travel agencies operate in two kinds – the inbound travel which focuses on bringing in tourists to visit the country and the outbound which handles concerns on traveling outside the country, including the passport applications.

With the competition evident in the industry, she said that there is also a possibility that those agencies which are dependent on outbound travel will close their businesses.

What was even frustrating, Sa-a noted, is that they cannot ask for help from DFA Cebu officer-in-charge Elias Balawag.

Balawag, on the other hand, said that they are just following directions given by the national office and that there are even some “negligent” liaison officers who cannot submit the complete requirements for their clients.

He added that the department’s decision was based on the concerns from public perception that it is giving priority to travel agency-assisted applicants over walk-in applicants and the additional service fee amounting to P500 that they have to pay to the officer aside from the P950 regular payment for 25 day-process or the P1,200 overtime payment for 15 days.

He cited that such extra payment is against the Republic Act 9485 or the Anti Red Tape Act of 2007.

Balawag said that travel agencies need not worry of the directive because they can just reassign their liaison officers to other departments responsible for ticketing, bookings and accommodations.

Balawag confirmed that there are currently 68 agencies in the region accredited by them, 66 of which are from Cebu and 2 from Dumaguete. — (FREEMAN)