Hontiveros calls for criminal charges vs 'pastillas' bribery scheme suspectsThis government photo release shows President Rodrigo Duterte meeting officials and personnel of the Bureau of Immigration allegedly involved in the ‘pastillas’ controversy at the Malacañang Palace on November 9, 2020. MANILA, Philippines — Criminal charges should be filed against over 25 suspects involved in the 'pastillas' bribery scheme, where immigration workers allegedly received kickbacks to expedite the entry of Chinese nationals through airports, according to Sen. Risa Hontiveros. The four-page executive summary of the report, available on the Senate's website, identified the suspects behind the pastillas scheme, and how they operated. According to Hontiveros, the VUA system for Chinese nationals is used by many syndicates to traffic women into the country, Hontiveros believes. Latest BI data shows that almost four million Chinese nationals have entered the country between August 2017 to January 2020.

Source: Philippine Star January 26, 2022 15:50 UTC