BI operations in airports back to normal

MANILA, Philippines — The Bureau of Immigration (BI)’s operations at the country’s major airports have normalized following the surge in the number of passengers during the nationwide Holy Week break and the magnitude 6.1 earthquake that struck Central Luzon on April 22.

The agency’s operations at both Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) and Clark International Airport (CIA) are back to normal, according to BI port operations division chief Grifton Medina.

“Immigration operations at Clark airport are now back to normal after we resumed full operation on Wednesday following the closure due to earthquake damage,” Medina announced yesterday.

“Also, the number of passengers at NAIA and other airports have already decreased after the holiday rush,” he added.

Medina also reported that the influx of passengers, including the ones diverted from CIA, was effectively managed because of the implementation of the personnel augmentation scheme, and the fully functional electronic gates at the airports.

He commended BI officers “for maintaining vigilance and professionalism during the past weeks.”

“Rest assured, we will strive to be a more efficient bureau in the coming years,” Medina said.

The officers who were part of the augmentation scheme have been reassigned to the BI main office and other immigration field and satellite offices, according to the BI official.

Meanwhile, BI Commissioner Jaime Morente said he has ordered the collection of in-kind donations from BI employees for victims of the recent earthquake.

“We pray that our kababayan who were affected by the earthquake soon recover,” Morente said, adding that he has instructed their offices in Clark and Angeles to serve as repository of donations from employees.

“We have likewise sent men to assist in the relief efforts. We will be extending help wherever possible,” he noted.