The Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) has urged lawmakers to pass the bills that will allow the quick cancellation of birth certificates fraudulently acquired by aliens and the seizure of properties illegally acquired by foreigners.

Solicitor General Menardo I. Guevarra said during PTV’s Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon on Tuesday, Feb. 18, that the OSG has been tasked by Congress to cancel such birth certificates and seize such properties following hearings conducted by the House of Representatives quad committee (quad com) on Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs).

However, Guevarra lamented that such actions that will be done by the OSG through the courts will be costly and time consuming.

Under the bill on the cancelation of birth certificates illegally acquired by foreigners, Guevarra said “gagawing administratibo ang cancelation (the cancelation can be done administratively).”

“Kaya hinihiling namin sa Kongreso, at meron naman bill na nafile sa Kongreso, na gawing administrative cancelation ‘yung mga ganyang klaseng birth certificates instead na dadaan sa husgado (That’s why we are asking Congress, and there’s already a bill filed in Congress, to allow the administrative cancelation instead undergoing court processes),” Guevarra said.

He pointed out that court process of the cancelation includes court hearings that might be scheduled a month or months apart.

“Nang matapos ang congressional investigation sa POGO, binigyan kami ng report ng quad com at ni-request kami na simulan ang mass action para sa pagkansela ng libo-libong certificates of live birth na apparently ay mukhang irregular or falsified ang content na kinuha ng mga foreigners para they can pretend to be Filipino citizens (When the congressional investigation on POGO was finished, we were given a report by the quad com and the OSG was requested to start mass action to cancel the thousands of birth certificates that were apparently illegally acquired by foreigners so they can pretend to be Filipinos),” said Guevarra.

“So, if they are able to do that (acquire Filipino citizenship) pwede sila tumakbo for public office, pwede sila bumili ng mga private property dito (they can run for public office and buy properties here in the country) and so forth and so on,” he warned.

In the meantime, Guevarra said “we have to do with the usual process na medyo matagal (which takes long).”

As to the forfeiture of properties, Guevarra said “we are hoping na maipasa rin ‘yan ng Kongreso the soonest possible time para magkaroon ng special law focusing on the civil forfeiture of assets or real properties acquired by foreign nationals illegally (Congress can pass it the soonest possible time so there can be a law focusing on the civil forfeiture of assets illegally acquired by foreign nationals).”

In the meantime, Guevarra said “ang ginagamit namin d’yan ay ang AMLA, ang Anti-Money Laundering Act (what we are using for the forfeiture of such assets is the Anti-Money Laundering Act).”