In order to strengthen its campaign against entry of illegal aliens and foreign criminals in the country, the Bureau of Immigration (BI) has graduated another batch of 26 employees tasked to man its border security program, it was learned last Monday.

The 26 employees completed a two-week basic in-service training at the Philippine Immigration Academy in Angeles City, Pampanga. These include 15 immigration officers, 10 law enforcement operatives and an administrative aide.

Immigration Commissioner Nonoy Libanan said that with the trainings given to the new batch of employees, they are now capable of profiling undesirable aliens trying to enter the country.

“You are the products of an extraordinary training and because of that, we have already enough competent and highly trained personnel for deployment to guard our country’s entry points,” Libanan told the employees during their graduation.

The BI chief added that although the bureau has used the modern technology in its border security management, their efforts will go to naught if it is not manned by competent personnel. “There are modernized computers and procedures, but the most important factor is the people manning them. You belong to that elite kind of persons.”

Lawyer Floro Balato Jr., BI spokesman, added that the employees attended courses on immigration laws, rules, procedures, and policies; document fraud and detection; impostor recognition; passenger assessment and profiling; grounds for exclusion and deportation; Philippine citizenship laws; border control information; and international best immigration practices.

He stressed that the training would effectively prepare the graduates in screening and targeting people involved in terrorism, trafficking, illegal migration, smuggling, and other transnational crimes. “They will also ensure that visiting tourists, investors and other international travelers are provided with efficient, courteous and fast service upon their arrival and departure at the airports,” Balato added.