ZAMBOANGA CITY (Mindanao Examiner / Mar. 29, 2012) – Philippine authorities have seized 11 forged birth certificates from Filipino passport applicants in Sabah’s Kota Kinabalu.
The Philippine Embassy in Kuala Lumpur said the two Filipino consular mobile offices in Sabah and the Mission were aware of the attempted submission of spurious birth certificates by some passport applicants who are abetted by a few placement agencies, and have earlier on undertaken corrective measures.
“The consular mobile team in Kota Kinabalu recently confiscated 11 forged birth certificates, while the team in Tawau rejected 12 birth certificates. Our consular mobile teams have been vigilant in protecting the integrity of the Philippine passport,” the Philippine Embassy said in a statement sent to the Mindanao Examiner.
It made the clarification in view of media reports that some applicants have resorted to procuring falsified documents in order to beat the April 10 deadline for the Sabah 5P amnesty program.
The Philippine Embassy and the consular teams are also investigating a placement agency that allegedly abetted the forgeries.
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