Senator Hontiveros asked China FM to help arrest COVID-19 vaccine smugglers
Senator Risa Hontiveros on Friday appealed to Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi to help arrest and deport Chinese syndicates — especially those involved in the smuggling of illegal COVID-19 vaccine into the Philippines.
In a statement, Senator Hontiveros said Chinese criminals in the Philippines should be arrested and deported as the Philippines wasn’t a “crime scene for Chinese”.
Also, the Chinese foreign minister should include those with ties to the local POGO (Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator) industry.
Senator Hontiveros also said that China’s foreign minister should cooperate with the Philippine government in order to completely crack down on crime.
The senator hoped that they’re aggressive in arresting their criminals in the Philippines in the same way they’re aggressive in claiming the country’s West Philippine Sea.
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Senator Hontiveros also pointed out that the Philippine National Police (PNP) arrested one Filipino and seven Chinese who were involved in the kidnapping and killing of Chinese POGO (Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator) workers in San Pedro, Laguna this week alone.
She added that the case was just one of the many crimes linked to the POGO (Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator) industry.
“Perhaps the foreign minister can help our Department of Foreign Affairs in resolving issues affecting our local POGO industry. We need to stop these syndicates before they become more comfortable with the local terrain and start victimizing more Filipinos,” Senator Hontiveros said.
With this, Senator Hontiveros challenged the Bureau of Immigration (BI) last December to prosecute more illegal Chinese employees.
Last week, Senator Hontiveros also encouraged Beijing authorities to lead its own inquiry into the unauthorized entry of smuggled COVID-19 vaccines into the Philippines following the reported illegal vaccination of Presidential Security Group (PSG) members.
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