Faster passport application process by June, Cayetano says


By ERWIN COLCOL, GMA News
Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano on Tuesday said passport application processing will be faster and smoother by June this year, given the upcoming developments in their facilities and equipment.
In an ambush interview at the House of Representatives, Cayetano said he is expecting that 60 to 80 percent of the problem regarding passport processing will be resolved by June.
"Maraming problema, but 'yung major cause ng delay is mas maraming nag-aapply kesa sa kaya naming i-process araw-araw," he said.
Cayetano was at the House of Representatives to attend the joint inquiry of the House Committees on Good Government and Public Accountability and of Foreign Affairs on the alleged anomalies behind the slow passport processing of the Department of Foreign Affairs.
Cayetano said that with the budget that Congress has given them for this year, they would be able to open more regional consular offices across the country that could issue passports to Filipinos.
These consular offices would be opened in the following regions:
  • Region I: San Nicolas, Ilocos Norte
  • Region II: Santiago, Isabela
  • Region III: Malolos or Meycauayan, Bulacan
  • Region IV-A: Calamba or San Pablo City, Laguna, Dasmariñas City, Cavite, Antipolo, Rizal
  • Region X: Oroquieta City or Ozamis City, Misamis Occidental
  • Region XI: Tagum, Davao del Norte
Aside from this, 10 vans containing five machines that could each process 500 applications per day will also arrive, Cayetano said.
"So kapag nagawa 'yan, halos dodoble ang aming capacity. So mababawasan na 'yung waiting time doon sa appointment," he said.
Cayetano said he also advised APO Production Unit Inc. to procure additional printing machines for the passports.
"So as of now, 'yung printing nila, hindi nade-delay kasi mas kaunti ang pinapa-print namin every day sa kaya nila. Pero in a few weeks or few months, mapupunuan na rin 'yun. So kailangan maaga pa lang, bumili na sila ng mga additional na makina," he said.
Cayetano also wants to have passports printed in Europe, the Middle East and United States themselves, in order to reduce the waiting time for Filipinos in these areas whose passports are still printed in the Philippines.
The DFA has also extended the office hours and days for their existing consular offices, Cayetano said.
"Alam namin na maraming naghahabol na mag-travel ng April at tsaka May, so nagbukas na rin kami ng Saturdays sa Aseana," he said.
"Pinag-aaralan na rin kung kaya ng two shifts or 16 hours patakbuhin ang ibang mga opisina and then kumukuha kami ng mga extra machines na ilagay sa mga mall, opisina, para mas makapagkuha ng passport," he added.
The DFA, Cayetano said, has also put up an action plan for Muslim Filipinos in Mindanao who needed passports for Hajj, their annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia. —KBK, GMA News

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