BI to test all 3,157 personnel for coronavirus

The Bureau of Immigration has made rapid testing for the new coronavirus disease (COVID-19) mandatory for all of its 3,157 employees.

Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente, in a statement on Thursday, said those who refuse to submit to testing would not be allowed to work.

According to him, “we have decided to make these tests compulsory for all our personnel to further safeguard the health of our employees and the people who transact business in our offices due to the increasing number of COVID-19 cases in the country.”

The BI main office in Intramuros, Manila was temporarily closed for disinfection on Monday after an employee was found positive for COVID-19.

Free of charge

With the help of the Manila City government, mandatory and free of charge testing for bureau personnel started on Wednesday.

The BI said another round of tests for those assigned at Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia), satellite and extension offices in Manila would be conducted in the next few days.

Apart from those assigned at the main office in Intramuros, employees in field offices and subports outside Metro Manila were also ordered to avail themselves of the free COVID-19 tests for front-liners.

At the same time, Morente required all accredited liaison officers and representatives of travel agencies and law offices transacting business with the bureau to undergo rapid testing or they would be barred from the premises.

Rapid tests for the coronavirus were initially voluntary for immigration employees. However, only about a third of the 3,157 personnel submitted themselves for testing, Morente said. These were done at Naia, Clark Airport and the BI detention facility in Taguig City.