Filipinos in Sabah frustrated over embassy’s shortcomings

KOTA KINABALU: The Philippine Embassy in Kuala Lumpur, through its mobile consular mission team, successfully assisted 3,191 Filipinos seeking consular services during the exercise organised in Kota Kinabalu last month.

The services conducted in Putatan from February 15-21 by embassy staff for Philippine nationals in the city and nearby areas included issuance of new and renewal of passports, travel documents, notarials and civil registry, entrepreneurship advice, and visitation at detention centres among others.

The number of applicants turning out at the designated venue during every consular mission exercise in Sabah was increasing continuously.

Despite arriving at the venue hours before the door of the mission opened, there was still a big number of applicants being disappointed and frustrated because of the embassy’s 150 quota policy, meaning only 150 applicants would be entertained per day.

The embassy said it set the 150 quota policy due to shortage of manpower. Similar frustrations were experienced by many Filipinos during the March 9-13 exercise held in Sandakan.

As a result, clamours for the setting up of a so-called Embassy consular office, if not a general consular office permanently based in Sabah, were posted at the embassy’s official Facebook account.