AN average of 35,000 passengers have arrived in the country on a daily basis this holiday season, according to the Bureau of Immigration.
Immigration deputy spokesperson Melvic Mabulac said aside from the arriving passengers, they have also recorded an average outbound passengers of up to 29,000 for the same period.
“As of now, we can record that around 25,000 to 29,000 passengers daily sa ating mga departure and on the arrivals, around 30,000 to 35,000 on a daily average,” Mabulac told ABS CBN News Monday.
Mabulac said they expected this increase, especially since most of the travel restrictions imposed at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic had been lifted.
“Pag holiday season talaga hindi natin maiwasan na mahaba ang pila sa mga paliparan,” he added.
Mabulac said the BI and airport authorities at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport are doing all they can to address the congestion and long lines of passengers.
Earlier this month, BI spokesperson Krizia Dana Sandoval said the agency sees a continued increase in tourist arrivals and returning Filipinos this holiday season compared to the same period last year.
Sandoval said that for the entire month of December 2021, immigration recorded over 195,000 arrivals while last October alone, the number has already reached more than 634,000.
Of the arrivals in December last year, 41,216 were Filipinos, many of whom were overseas workers.
The arrivals for December 24 and 25 last year doubled compared to the same period in 2020 when many travel restrictions due to the pandemic were still in place.
During the two-day period last year, the BI recorded 11,074 arrivals compared to 5,478 in 2020.
To ensure the smooth flow of arriving and departing passengers, Mabulac said the BI has deployed a rapid response team to augment manpower at immigration counters in NAIA and other international airports in the country.
He also said that all immigration counters are fully manned.
Immigration personnel are not allowed to file leaves during the holiday season for maximum deployment.
