The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) has asked the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) to move for the cancellation of over 1,500 registered birth certificates that were suspected to be fraudulently acquired by foreigners.
Solicitor General Menardo I. Guevarra on Tuesday, Nov. 26, confirmed that “the PSA has endorsed to us for cancellation a list of registered birth certificates fraudulently obtained by aliens, mostly Chinese.”
“Considering the huge number of these cases, exceeding 1,500 in one civil registry office alone, we have recommended to Congress the enactment of a law that would authorize administrative cancellation of such birth certificates in lieu of a tedious and expensive judicial process,” Guevarra said.
Last Nov. 20, the House of Representatives quad-committee filed a bill that sought to establish an administrative process to expedite the cancellation of birth certificates fraudulently acquired by foreign nationals.
House Bill (HB) No.11117, the proposed Fraudulent Birth Certificate Cancellation Law, covers those involved in illegal drug operations and other criminal activities associated with Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs).
Quad-comm overall chairman, Surigao del Norte 2nd district Rep. Robert Ace Barbers, led the filing of HB No.11117 -- the third legislative measure that resulted from the special four-way panel's investigation into alleged criminal activities by foreigners, particularly the use of falsified documents.
The proposed measure was filed after revelations that thousands of foreign nationals have secured Philippine birth certificates through fraudulent means.
In Davao del Sur alone, reports stated that more than 1,200 falsified birth certificates were issued by the local civil registrar as of July 2024.