DFA to get sides of Enrile et al. before acting on DOJ request to cancel their passports

Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said Thursday night that it will first seek the comments of individuals listed on the justice department’s request for passport cancellation in relation to the pork barrel scam case.

In a statement, the DFA said it had received the Department of Justice’s request for the cancellation of the passports of 37 people involved in the case, including Senators Juan Ponce Enrile, Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. and Jinggoy Estrada.

The foreign office said it will follow assessment procedure as prescribed in the 1996 Philippine Passport Act, which includes giving subjects of passport cancellation requests the chance to say their piece.

“…[T]he Department will ask the concerned persons to submit written comments on the request of the DOJ. On the basis of the written comments submitted, the Department will make a decision on the request of the DOJ,” read the DFA statement.

Under the passport law, the DFA may only cancel passports of fugitives, convicted criminals and those proven to have fraudulently acquired or tampered with their passports. The foreign secretary meanwhile could use his discretion to cancel the travel document in cases when national security, public safety and health is on the line.

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DOJ asks DFA to cancel passport of Enrile, Estrada, Revilla