(Eagle News)– Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. on Tuesday, Jan. 15, said he would issue an order that would remove the submission of birth certificates as a requirement for passport renewals.
“Old passport is more than sufficient,” Locsin said in a Tweet.
According to Locsin, “in one hour, I will have the text of the order I’ve been dying to give to resolve a more (sic) blockage in passport processing system.”
Locsin issued the statement after the Palace said requiring applicants to submit their birth certificates for the renewal of their passports was a form of red tape.
Earlier, Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Elmer Cato said the birth certificates were required after Locsin said the Department of Foreign Affairs’ former passport maker made off with passport applicants’ data following the termination of the firm’s contract.
Locsin later clarified the data was “made inaccessible” and not “runaway-able.”
