Senator Risa Hontiveros on Wednesday welcomed the Department of Justice’s decision to stop the Bureau of Immigrations from issuing working visas to foreign individuals who want to work in the Philippines.

“I do welcome the Department of Justice’s directive that orders the BI to stop granting work visas requested by fake companies. This is an important step to stop the malpractice in the agency,” Hontiveros said in a statement.

She noted that the BI’s issuance of work visas to fake corporations, which has allowed entry to thousands of foreigners, is considered a “national security risk.”

“We do not know if there was a syndicate or criminals that have entered the country. We also have information that these work visas are what foreign nationals use to work for Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators,” she said.

Hontiveros said the matter would be tackled in the next Senate’s investigation into alleged crimes linked to POGO.

According to the DOJ, the BI has given out thousands of pre-arranged employment visas, called 9G, to foreigners allegedly employed in fake local corporations.

The senator, who led a series of hearings on the corruption scandal in the BI known as the “Pastillas Scam,” said that the agency should do more to clean up its ranks.

“It has been four years since the pastillas scam in the BI was exposed. Why does it seem like nothing has changed?” she said.

“When would we see a better BI? How many Senate hearings do they need? It is disappointing that the agency is front and center of this issue once again,” she added.