Weak link

If President Duterte wants his anti-crime drive to succeed, one agency that needs his attention is the Bureau of Immigration. The Senate as well as the Department of Justice, which supervises the BI, are set to conduct an investigation into the recent escape of 57 Chinese who were being held for illegal online casino operations at the Clark Freeport in Pampanga.

Reports said the Chinese scaled the wall of the Fontana Leisure Park and Casino Hotel at Clark, where they were detained, and walked to freedom last Thursday. Why is a luxury hotel serving as a government detention facility?

The 57 were among 1,316 undocumented Chinese apprehended on Nov. 25. Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre said that through an intermediary, P100,000 to P250,000 was dangled for every Chinese who would be freed. Yesterday the camp of the casino’s Chinese owner Jack Lam denied allegations of trying to bribe Aguirre and gaming chief Andrea Domingo.

It’s not the first time that bribery has been insinuated in a case involving illegal aliens held by the immigration bureau. Over the years, BI personnel have been embroiled in scandals in connection with the questionable release or deportation of aliens facing criminal charges including drug trafficking in the Philippines.

The Chinese workers at Fontana at least are not facing drug charges. But the BI must have the competence and readiness to detain any individual accused of breaking immigration rules and the country’s laws. A weak or corrupt immigration office can compromise any campaign against crime, especially transnational operations such as drug trafficking. President Duterte must make it clear to the BI rank and file that he will not tolerate a weak link in law enforcement.