Saturday, November 17, 2007 Don’t greet passengers with ‘Merry Christmas’
IMMIGRATION personnel, operatives and officers are now prohibited from saying “Merry Christmas” to airline passengers during the yuletide season.
Bureau of Immigration 7 Director Geronimo Rosas said Christmas greetings are often misinterpreted by the public as “asking for a gift” or grease money while their travel documents are being examined and stamped.
He said that as instructed by Immigration Commissioner Marcelino Libanan, officers and operatives are also prohibited from demanding or receiving gifts during the Christmas period.
Immigration officers assigned at the international arrival and departure terminals’ counters may just smile when entertaining passengers, instead of saying “Merry Christmas.”
“Respect is earned and every immigration officer must act orderly so they will be respected by the public,” Rosas said.
He said foreigners and returning overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) should refrain from giving gifts or they will be held liable for bribery.
In the past, OFWs gave money to immigration officers in full view of the public during Christmas season.
“If immigration personnel are caught receiving what an OFW will give, he will be punished in accordance with Civil Service Commission rules and regulations,” Rosas said.
He said the rules will be strictly implemented at the Mactan-Cebu International Airport because immigration officers there deal directly with arriving and departing passengers.
Stringent enforcement of rules is also being asked by a Cebu City legislator from the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) during Christmas.
Lights
As cheap Christmas lights flood the stores these days, City Councilor Arsenio Pacaña asked the DTI to inspect series lights sold in the stores and make sure they are safe and have passed quality standards.
He also urged the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) to conduct an information drive as a fire prevention measure against the use of substandard lights.
In a proposed resolution, Pacaña reminded consumers to be extra careful, and buy only those Christmas lights and decors that come with Import Commodity Clearance (ICC) or Product Standard (PS) markings.
The markings would show that the products have passed the product and safety standard test, he said.
With several downtown stores selling cheap Christmas lights that are said to be of poor quality, Pacaña said the DTI should check the items for product quality and safety standard compliance.
“The unusually high incidence of fire occurrences in November 2006, which the BFP attributed to substandard Christmas lights, should be a cause for vigilance on the part of the consumers,” he added.
Councilors will tackle Pacaña’s proposed resolution in their regular session on Wednesday next week. (EOB/LCR)
