By Robert B. Roque, Jr.
The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) is on a relentless pursuit to ensure that the Parañaque-based Masaya Travel Agency OPC operates without a hint of irregularity. On October 4, our intrepid BIR team, led by Juan Pactanac, descended upon the firm’s office armed with a mission order signed by Regional Director Edgar Tolentino.
Initial findings exposed a troubling lack of transparency: no display of the current year’s registration fee, absence of notice to the public for receipts and registration certificates, no original certificate of registration on display, no registered book of accounts, recording updates, computerized book of accounts, or official receipts and bank accounts. The agency’s owner, Jiajun Sun, a Chinese national, and their accountant were summoned by the BIR but failed to appear.
My spies tell me that the elusive foreigner has someone of high position within the BIR in his payroll, raising eyebrows and questions for Commissioner Romeo Lumagui Jr. Are these underhanded dealings common, Commissioner? Word has it that some Chinese nationals, like those at Masaya, dodge tax payments while reaping pandemic profits from hotel bookings, airfare, and RTPCR tests. Is it fair that foreigners skirt taxes while hardworking Filipinos comply?
Further scrutiny is warranted for the company’s treasurer, Wenying Qu, and another individual named Diane Sun. Our sources hint at another Chinese employee, Yingwu Li, facing immigration trouble for a fake Alien Employment Permit. Is this a pattern among Chinese nationals in our midst? Immigration Commissioner Norman Tansingco, the public demands answers – it seems there’s a slew of wayward mainland Chinese in our country.
Selling identities
Senator Loren Legarda’s call for an investigation into Chinese nationals’ illicit acquisition of Philippine passports exposes a sinister web of collusion within government agencies. The audacious use of authentic documents, including birth certificates from the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) and the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), suggests a disturbing level of complicity among insiders.
Reports from my sources reveal a nefarious underworld where Filipino traitors within the Bureau of Immigration (BI), DFA, and the National Bureau of Investigation facilitate the identity theft of deceased Filipinos. Shockingly, these Chinese impostors are not only infiltrating the Philippines but also acquiring land in Bulacan at cut-rate prices while we defend our maritime boundaries in the West Philippine Sea.
I’m told about this “Curious case of Churian Liao” which underscores the depth of this betrayal, implicating an NBI insider who, as a legal officer, manipulates records and compromises national interests for personal gain. He’s sold out for bidding and right-of-way cases, erased derogatory flags in NBI records, and the dirty list goes on.
As Senator Ronald dela Rosa questions the authenticity of foreign nationals posing as Filipinos, Legarda presses the DFA to scrutinize its own ranks. The Senate, led by President Juan Miguel Zubiri, rightly demands a thorough investigation into the collusion and calls for preemptive measures against undesirable foreign nationals.
In this grim saga, the real threat isn’t just external; it’s the rot within our own institutions. It’s time to expose the traitors within and fortify our defenses against those who undermine our national integrity.
* * *
SHORT BURSTS. For comments or reactions, email firingline@ymail.com or tweet @Side_View via X app (formerly Twitter). Read current and past issues of this column at https://www.thephilbiznews.com