Flight cancellations by the airlines and travel restrictions implemented due to the COVID-19 outbreak has prompted the Bureau of Immigration (BI) to scale down its operations and downsize its workforce at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).

“Starting today, we are relocating our offices and operations at Terminals 2 and 3 to Terminal 1 where all flights to and from NAIA shall take place,” BI Commissioner Jaime Morente said.

Earlier, the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) announced that it was moving all its operations to NAIA’s Terminal 1 in view of the suspension of many flights by different airlines due to the ongoing enhanced community quarantine.

Morente disclosed that as a result of the downscaling of airport operations, the BI has assigned a skeletal workforce at the NAIA that would suffice to ensure the uninterrupted delivery of immigration services to the travelling public.

“This would enable our personnel to lessen the risk of getting infected by this virus,” the BI chief said.

Morente added that the action was to ensure that hazards are minimized, as the officers continued to report as frontliners at the airport amidst the ongoing community quarantine to fight the spread of COVID-19.

According to BI port operations division chief Grifton Medina, all of the immigration officers assigned at NAIA’s three terminals have been instructed to report for duty at Terminal 1 until the resumption of normal flight operations.

Medina said that as a result of the downsizing of operations, BI officers manning NAIA’s immigration counters are now on skeletal force.

“We are now fully compliant with the requirements of the enhanced community quarantine wherein government employees are enjoined to maintain a minimal number of employees without compromising the delivery of services to the public,” Medina added.

He assured that there are enough BI officers who will be on hand to conduct immigration formalities for passengers of the few international flights that will continue to fly in and out of the NAIA during the quarantine period. DMS