13 M’sians Had Their Passports Confiscated, To Be Deported As Philippines Rejects MySejahtera Cert

By Karissa Lund  •  14 Feb 2022 in News

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13 Malaysians are currently stranded at Manila’s Ninoy Aquino International Airport after the Philippines authorities refused to recognise their Malaysian digital Covid-19 vaccination credentials.

According to The Star, the 13 Malaysians were refused entry into the republic as they were told the Malaysian digital vaccine certificate in the MySejahtera app was not acceptable proof of vaccination.

They were even told by the Philippine immigration authorities that they needed to either have been vaccinated in another country such as Singapore or possess the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) International Certificate of Vaccination.

The Malaysians are part of a group totalling 15 people that travelled from Kuala Lumpur on 12 Feb of which two others were of foreign nationality. The group intended to travel to the Philippines for business, personal and humanitarian reasons.

One of the Malaysian travellers said that their passports were confiscated and they were told that they will be deported on Tuesday (15 Feb).

“Our passports have been confiscated, and we were told that we would be deported. As there are no hotels available, we are being made to sleep on benches or the floor,” said the unnamed Malaysian when contacted on Sunday (13 Feb) night.

The traveller also added that the Malaysian Ambassador to the Philippines personally came to see the stranded passengers and that they were very grateful that he is trying his best to help them. As of now, they had yet to receive a response from the Philippines Foreign Affairs Agency.

“We are feeling frustrated at not being allowed into the country. We worry most about being deported. We feel that if we are deported, it would be a huge disappointment and a major setback having travelled this far.

“We pray that the Malaysian government can support us in gaining entry into the Philippines,” the Malaysian added.