NBI finds 1,200 fake birth certificates in Davao Sur

Not just 200, but up to 1,200 foreigners believed to be Chinese nationals obtained Philippine birth certificates through late birth registration in the Davao del Sur town of Sta. Cruz since 2016.

- MARK ERNEST VILLEZA

This information was received by the National Bureau of Investigation from the acting civil registrar of Sta. Cruz. The NBI is also verifying reports that several of the 1,200 have criminal records.

Last week, initial NBI findings showed that at least 102 cases of questionable late birth registration were recorded in Sta. Cruz town in 2018, 2019 and 2021.

“The actual number has grown to 1,200,” NBI Director Jaime Santiago told The STAR yesterday.

He said the NBI will also expand its probe on late birth registration to other areas in the country such as Pampanga and Tarlac, where illegal Philippine offshore gaming operator (POGO) hubs were raided in the past weeks.

Mario Tizon, who served as Sta. Cruz civil registrar since December 1994, has been suspended, Santiago said.

Amid reports that Mayor Alice Guo of Bamban, Tarlac had used late birth registration to claim Philippine citizenship and run for mayor in 2022, the NBI in Davao del Sur had initiated a probe beginning last April into reports of numerous cases involving Chinese nationals in the province. Tizon was reassigned in April.

The NBI regional office said the spurious late birth registration posed a potential national security threat.

Last week, Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian said he would file a resolution seeking a Senate probe into reports that the falsified birth certificates were obtained from Sta. Cruz for an average fee of P300,000 each, saying “this could be 200 Alice Guos, which is very concerning.”