Surigao del Norte 2nd district Rep. Robert Ace Barbers (House of Representative’s’ Facebook)

Surigao del Norte 2nd district Rep. Robert Ace Barbers said the Philippine Statistics Authority’s (PSA) has established a technical working group (TWG) that aims to strengthen the late registration policy for birth certificates in a bid to stop the likes of Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo from abusing the system.

Barbers said new guidelines will make it difficult for foreign nationals to avail the late registration to register themselves as Filipinos.

“So now that the TWG, created by PSA as a result of our committee hearings, has now made it difficult for anyone to avail of the late registration policy,” he said during a committee hearing on Wednesday, June 19.

Barbers, chairperson of the House Committee on Dangerous Drugs, noted that it’s “ridiculous” how Chinese foreigners used the late registration as a “modus” to become Filipino citizens.

“Nakakatawa nga naman na karamihan ng nag-aavail ng late registration eh LCR (Local Civil Registry) lang. O hindi kaya iba, wala pang endorsement ng LCR. PSA issues directly an endorsement, kaya sila nagkakaroon ng birth certificate,” he said.

(It's funny that most of the people availing late registration is only through LCR. Or else, no LCR endorsement yet. PSA issues directly an endorsement, so they have a birth certificate.)

The veteran lawmaker noted that of about 90 percent of Chinese citizens that availed the policy, their birth certificates would state: born in a faraway barangay, given birth to by a comadrona (midwife), and a late registration of a minimum of at least ten years.

“Like this Alice Guo. She availed of the late registration 17 years after——sa (in the) farm. And we all know that,” he quipped.

During the same hearing, Santa Rosa City lone district Rep. Dan Fernandez expressed his dismay to the PSA for their supposed laxed requirements on late registration.

Fernandez, in particular, questioned the agency’s Birth Registration Assistance Project (BRAP), which is intended for unregistered Filipinos who belong to the marginalized sector.

He said this policy is also “abused” by foreigners since the application process, at its current form, has loopholes.

“Ako (I), as a foreigner, I will get the so-called negative omnibus certification for PSA. And then, the next requirement, I will go to the local civil registrar. I will be given my birth certificate. And then, the reason behind that birth certificate is the reason why he registered late,” the lawmaker noted.

After this, he said the foreigner will then obtain the affidavit of two disinterested persons, and then a certificate of indigency which he says is “easily obtainable” at barangay halls.

“And when they issue an indigency, the last requirement is any proof of identity, driver's license, barangay certification. That's it. And that's all,” Barbers continued.

“This is being abused by the foreigners, kaya maraming nakapag-own ng property kaya sila nagkaroon ng passport(that's why many people have owned property so they had a passport) because they issued this,” he stressed.