The National Bureau of Investigation-Davao (NBI-11) has filed several charges against former town hall employees of Sta. Cruz, Davao del Sur who allegedly issued falsified birth certificates to Chinese nationals.

NBI-11 Director, Atty. Arcelito Albao, said former Sta. Cruz Local Civil Registry Officer, Mario Tizon, and former clerk of the Local Civil Registry Office (LCRO), Marlyn Lopez, are facing charges for violation of the Law on Registry of Civil Status, Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, and falsification of public documents.

The charges were filed before the Office of the Ombudsman in Mindanao on Monday, August 19, 2024.

NBI-11 said the former clerk was the one who allegedly prepared the falsified birth certificates and Tizon was the one who approved.

Before the charges were filed, the two allegedly ignored the time and the chance given to them to answer the allegation during investigation.

“Ang pag-file natin ng case, I am sure aaksyonan ito ng batas and hahabulin sila,” Albao said.

The same charges were also filed against a Chinese national and her 16-year-old child after alleged falsified birth certificates were confiscated from them.

The Chinese national is also facing perjury charges for allegedly lying when she declared in the affidavit for late registration that she and her husband, who is also Chinese, were residents of Barangay Inawayan, Sta. Cruz and that her child was born a Filipino.

“After natin ma-trace sino itong lahat ng mga taong to pwede natin ipacancel ang mga birth certificate na to along with other national IDs na na-issue, properties, bank accounts pwede nating i-garnish or i-attach sa kaso,” Albao added.

GMA Regional TV One Mindanao is reaching out to the respondents for comment, as of this writing.

Meanwhile, NBI-11 is investigating more delayed registration of birth since 2016 to 2023.

“Hindi pa kasali yung 2016 pababa…madadagdagan pa to…all of these are Chinese nationals it doesn’t mean na lahat ito ay spurious kasi merong mga Chinese na nakita na rin namin na nakapagpangasawa ng Filipina so pwede yun sila,” Albao said.

On the other hand, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) in Davao del Sur has tightened the implementation of late registration.

“Specifically katong mga delayed registration nationwide nato so strict implementation no naa lang tay additional requirements para iimplement sa atong mga LCR offices,” PSA-Davao del Sur Provincial Statistical Office OIC, Adeline Batucan, said.