Leaders of the House Quad Committee on Wednesday filed a bill seeking to establish an administrative process to expedite the cancellation of birth certificates fraudulently acquired by foreign nationals, including those involved in illegal drug operations and other criminal activities associated with Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGOs).
House Bill 11117 or the proposed “Fraudulent Birth Certificate Cancellation Law” marks the third legislative measure to arise from the Quad Comm’s investigation into alleged criminal activities by foreigners, particularly the use of falsified documents.
The bill was introduced by Senior Deputy Speaker Aurelio Gonzales Jr., Deputy Speaker David Suarez, Quad Comm Chairs Robert Ace Barbers, Bienvenido Abante Jr., Dan Fernandez, and Joseph Stephen Paduano; and Quad Comm Vice Chair Romeo Acop.
Other authors include Reps. Johnny Ty Pimentel, Gerville Luistro, Rodge Gutierrez, Francisco Paolo Ortega V, Jay Khonghun, Jonathan Keith Flores, Jil Bongalon, Margarita Nograles, Ernesto Dionisio Jr., Joel Chua, Zia Alonto Adiong, Lordan Suan, and Cheeno Miguel Almario.
“A birth certificate is the most basic document a Filipino citizen must have. It is a document that provides the imprimatur of the State that an individual is a Filipino and opens to the individual vast opportunities unavailable to foreigners, such as practicing a profession, pursuit of certain businesses, or even to run for public office,” the bill’s authors wrote in their explanatory note.
Under the proposed legislation, a Special Committee on Cancellation of Fraudulent Birth Certificates would be created, chaired by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) Registrar General, with members from the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), the Department of Justice (DOJ), and the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG).
The committee would be empowered to investigate complaints, subpoena evidence, and issue decisions on fraudulent birth certificates within 30 days of receiving evidence.
Complaints can be filed by any legal-age citizen or law enforcement agency and must include specific evidence, such as the name of the foreign national, the fraudulent birth certificate’s details, and the circumstances of its acquisition.
The foreign national would have 15 days to respond to the complaint, after which the committee would conduct hearings and decide based on substantial evidence. Decisions would be immediately executory but could be appealed to the Office of the President, which must resolve the appeal within 30 days.
The bill also seeks to penalize public officials and private individuals involved in facilitating fraudulent registrations.
