Diokno assures Immigration personnel of enough funds to pay for overtime

February 24, 2017

Budget Secretary Benjamin Diokno said there are funds for allowances of employees of the Bureau of Immigration (BI) who render overtime services.

In a statement on Friday, Diokno said ““a total of P224.835 million has been appropriated in the FY 2017 General Appropriations Act (GAA) specifically for the overtime pay of BI employees who do overtime services.”

Diokno made the statement after reports of work stoppage at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) by BI immigration officers causing long lines at immigration counters.

Immigration officers filed their leave of absence en masse last Tuesday as a sign of protest for the alleged non-payment of their overtime allowance.

“The immigration officers perform an important role in ensuring public security and safety.  They are at the frontline of the battle to secure our borders from terrorist threats, human trafficking, and illegal drug trade.  That’s why the President made sure that there is an appropriation in the GAA for their overtime pay in recognition for the work they perform,” Diokno said.

Since there is a specific funding for the overtime pay of BI employees in the 2017 GAA, Diokno said there is no need to tap into the express lane funds for this purpose.

So there is no more legal basis to use the express lane fund for their overtime pay,” Diokno clarified.

“All collections from the express lane fees must now be deposited in the General Fund with the National Treasury.  This is the rule that all government agencies follow, and the BI cannot exempt themselves from the law.  Otherwise, this makes the collection open to misuse and corruption,” he stated.

Funds for the overtime pay will be released as soon as the BI submits a special budget request with the Department of Budget and Management.  No such request has been filed by the BI. “It’s entirely up to the BI to submit these budget documents to us so we can finally process the release of the funds,” Diokno noted.

Diokno said  the BI used a total of P784.94 million of the express lane fund to pay the OT services of the BI workers in 2016. This is equivalent to 250 percent more than the prescribed rate provided in existing rules and regulations for overtime pay.

“The BI was previously allowed to tap into the fund for the overtime pay of its workers on the condition that the grant will be consistent with the pertinent laws and rules on allowances for government employees.  Given that huge amount, it seems the BI did not comply with the law.  They are insisting on using the express lane fund so they can continue enjoying the huge allowances they were used to, over and above what they are entitled to,” he added.

“They cannot hijack the government into giving them all their demands through threats of work stoppage and thereby endanger public safety. We recognize their right to overtime allowances, but this must be compliant with pertinent laws and rules that apply equally to all government agencies,” Diokno said.

As for the manpower shortage in the BI, he said it has additional 700 immigration officers to man its 24/7 operations, with 3-shift schedule.

“As with the special budget documents, our Department has not received any formal request from the BI for the creation of the new positions despite our constant reminder to them during the meetings we had,” said Diokno.

Of the 2,887 new positions, the budget can accommodate creating 1,000 for the current

With further threats of work stoppage, the Secretary said that “the government can tap into other offices to temporarily man the immigration counters, so that immigration operations in our airports will not be disrupted.”

“The DBM has already coordinated with other agencies for the manning and training requirements to avoid any inconvenience to the public that may be caused by immigration officers who refuse to perform their mandated duties and responsibilities,” said Diokno. DMS