Immigration bureau coddling fugitives?

Something stinks to high heavens in the Bureau of Immigration (BI), and this case is proving to be the latest kink in this administration’s much-ballyhooed straight and righteous path.

Justice Secretary Leila de Lima has stepped into the raging controversy involving Chinese national Wang Bo, a suspected crime lord wanted for illegal gambling and money laundering who has sought refuge in the Philippines.

De Lima issued a resolution last week reinstating the bureau’s deportation order against Wang Bo. However, the order’s implementation was held in abeyance pending an investigation into allegations that a P440-million bribe was paid to prevent Wang’s deportation.

It has gotten even uglier. The P440-million bribe, in turn, was purportedly used to pay off 292 lawmakers in the House of Representatives—or P1.5 million per lawmaker—to support the Bangsamoro Basic Law.

The name of the Liberal Party has been dragged into this mess because Associate Commissioners Gilberto Repizo and Abdullah Mangotara, who both refused to carry out the deportation of Wang Bo on grounds the Chinese authorities failed to present authenticated copies of documents pertaining to Wang, are members of the ruling party.

Repizo, a lawyer, is a province-mate and close associate of LP treasurer, Oriental Mindoro Gov. Alfonso Umali. He ran for vice mayor of Calapan, Oriental Mindoro, under the LP banner in 2013 but lost. Repizo, former legal counsel of Globe Asiatique founder Delfin Lee, was appointed BI associate commissioner last year.

We understand that the Department of Justice wants to get to the bottom of the alleged bribery case but why do we insist on keeping Wang here when a simple phone call to the Interpol by Philippine authorities would verify if there are, indeed, legal grounds to deport him to China?

Why is the immigration office being very strict with documentary requirements when it should just deport this fugitive from justice and let him face the music (and possibly, the firing squad) in China, and then investigate the alleged corruption that took place here after he is deported?

Do we really expect Wang Bo to admit that he gave bribes to Philippine government officials? What is the point of keeping him here? This bolsters the perception that he is very influential and that our officials are still bargaining with him.

But by deporting him, immigration officials can prove that Wang Bo is not untouchable. Keeping him in the Philippines only strengthens the belief that he is being used as a milking cow by the government for unsavory purposes.

De Lima should look into claims made by Commissioner Siegfred Mison that he recommended Wang’s deportation but was blocked by his two associate commissioners who argued that he should not be deported because the crimes were committed here.

A simple check on the minutes of that meeting will reveal if Mison is telling the truth. If it is true that his two deputy commissioners reversed his recommendations, de Lima should find out what strong legal arguments were used to overturn Mison’s decision.

De Lima has reversed the earlier resolution of the Board of Commissioners ordering Wang to be released from the custody of the immigration bureau, and ruled in favor of deportation, so we suppose she found the position of the deputy commissioners legally untenable.

But what will de Lima do with her battling immigration officials? If an ordinary government employee can be preventively suspended if he or she has been accused of graft and corruption, then these three highest officials should also be meted out the same.

After all, a preventive suspension does not mean they are guilty of the charges, but would only serve to prevent them from unduly influencing the investigation.

Meanwhile, we should get rid of Wang Bo and send him packing home to China. Maybe, this measure of goodwill could even help us in bargaining with Chinese officials to put an end to their land reclamation in the West Philippine Sea.