“This whole saga is nothing more than a smear campaign, or, worse, an act of vengeance”
CAUGHT in the maelstrom of a controversy he was previously warned about, Bureau of Immigration Commissioner Joel Anthony Viado recently told media that the person or persons behind an apparent orchestrated campaign to discredit the agency “has already been identified”.
Viado, in a statement, said he will disclose who the “brains” are “in due time.”
From where we stand, we believe the “due time” is now. The public needs to know.
The poor, hardworking men and women of the BI who are needlessly being dragged into this unending controversy need to know who. Viado owes it to us. He owes it to them. We are impatient. This issue has dragged on for far too long.
It will be recalled that we tackled this brouhaha in our recent column.
There are new developments, it seems. The latest in this saga is the reported appearance of a supposed “white paper” allegedly prepared and released by a group calling themselves “concerned employees.”
The appearance of the “white paper” followed an announcement from the office of Sen. Imee Marcos that she will be calling for an investigation of accusations being hurled against the agency and its leadership.
The media mileage that an anonymous paper is getting tells us that there are “professional hands” involved here. We know this game. We were not born yesterday. We know how this works.
Yes, this has all the ingredients of an orchestrated campaign. Viado is not the only victim of this smear drive. The entire BI and the innocent employees also are. We all are.
When an agency which is supposed to be safeguarding our porous borders is mired in a controversy like this, our country is exposed to greater risks. Organized elements preying on the weaknesses of our ramparts must be celebrating.
So, we hope Viado exposes the parties who he said are behind this smear drive and who have already been identified. There is no reason for him to keep the public in suspense and prolong this conflict.
Viado must confirm once and for all whether or not reports are true that the “brain” is someone who he has “seriously disappointed”. “Hindi napagbigyan,” as we say in the vernacular. Is it also true that this person is actually an official of BI?
In our earlier column, we asked the hard questions. We hope to finally get the answer.
As we said, is it true the said “request” had to do with a certain Tony Yang, the brother of powerful businessman Michael Yang, an adviser of former President Rodrigo Duterte?
Is it true the said BI official had lobbied for the release on bail of Yang who is currently detained and facing judicial processes for his involvement in POGO operations?
Is it true that Viado foiled the lobby attempt and gave a flat “no” to the alleged official?
Is it true it was Viado’s refusal the reason why this official is now on an apparent “crusade” to thrust the BI into another round of controversy?
The public as well as the innocent dedicated men and women of the BI deserve to know the real score and get it directly from Viado himself.
We have a stake here.
Not only are these people being paid from the taxes we faithfully remit to the government, they are also performing a vital role in national security.
This is one agency we do not wish to be caught in the crossfire—especially if the gunfight involves mere vengeance for a favor that was rejected.
We do not know the answers to the questions we hope Viado would respond to.
We hope he will—and soon.
The controversy being fanned by his adversaries now threaten to spill over to the Senate, and this will unnecessarily distract our solons from more pressing matters.
We want to know whether or not this mounting mess is worth paying attention to or is an issue we can altogether ignore.
As we said before, we do not want to be taken for a ride by parties pretending to be whistle-blowers but who, it could turn out, merely had an axe to grind against this controversial agency.
May we add: it is unfair on the part of BI employees to be dragged into this fisticuffs.
While there are bad eggs inside this agency, we believe they are outnumbered by honest, dedicated public servants. We hope that the instigators of the campaign against BI would stop using these truly concerned employees as a shield to mask their real agenda.
Those who have an axe to grind against the agency and its leadership must come out in the open, prove their case, and submit themselves to public scrutiny.
Minus these, we can only conclude that there is basis to say, this whole saga is nothing more than a smear campaign, or, worse, an act of vengeance. (Email: ernhil@yahoo.com)
