Commissioner's Profile
| Commissioner Marcelino Chicano Libanan's Profile |
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Commissioner Libanan completed his primary education at Taft Central Elementary School in his hometown, Taft, Eastern Samar where he was a consistent honor student. His secondary education was completed at the Seminario de Jesus Nazareno, Borongan, Eastern Samar wherein he graduated gold medalist. His B.S. Medical Technology and Bachelor of Laws degrees were obtained from the Divine Word University in Tacloban City wherein he was a Leyte-Samar Diocesan Scholar and a 100% academic scholar of said university. He passed the Philippine Bar in 1988. The Comissioner served in various elected positions prior to his appointment to the Bureau of Immigration. The Commissioner was a Member of the House of Representatives representing the Lone District of Samar in the 11th, 12th and 13th Congresses of the Republic of the Philippines. As such, he served in various capacities among which were: as Vice Chairman of the Committee on Transportation and Communications, Chairman of the Committee on Justice, Ex-Officio Member of the Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) and Vice Chairman of the Committee on Constitutional Amendments. He also served as the Majority Floor Leader of the powerful Commission on Appointments (CA) during the 13th Congress. During his stint as Chairman of the Committee on Justice of the 12th Congress, then Congressman Libanan authored, shepherded and defended in the plenary debates several major bills on judicial and penal reforms that were successfully enacted into law. As a member of the Judicial and Bar Council during the 12th Congress, Commissioner Libanan actively participated in the screening and selection of Justices of the Supreme Court, Court of Appeals and the Sandiganbayan, as well as Judges of first-level courts all over the country. In the entirety of his three consecutive terms in the House of Representatives, he authored and sponsored several vital legislations of national and local significance which include the Anti-Money Laundering Law, the Dual Citizenship Law, the Judicial Reform Act and the law giving special allowance to the members of the Judiciary and upgrading the salary of Prosecutors and the Public Attorney’s Office, among others. Other positions he held were Senior Board Member – the youngest Board Member of the country at the age of twenty four (24), and Vice Governor of his home province, Eastern Samar. Various honors and awards were also bestowed to the Commissioner during his life in public service which include the Emeritus Congressional Hall of Fame of 2005 and Most Outstanding Congressman for four consecutive years from 2001-2004, to name a few. In the area of revenue collection, it is worth-noting that the BI has impressively posted a record high income of P1.7 billion in 2007 and an all time high of P2.086 billion in 2008, without increasing the prescribed fees. The dramatic increase in collection was due to the implementation of the Commissioner’s pet project – the Visa Issuance Made Simple (VIMS) where visa application was simplified, consequently decreasing documentary requirements and significantly reducing processing time. Commissioner Libanan has also transformed the Bureau of Immigration from one of the most corrupt government agencies to be one of the most efficient and least corrupt. The Bureau of Immigration is now No. 3 among 100 government agencies complying with the Presidential Anti-graft Commission’s (PAGC) anti-corruption performance program. This is a dramatic climb from being No. 76 in the list of over 80 government agencies surveyed prior to Libanan’s appointment as Commissioner. BI is also currently the leading government agency in the installation of a merit-based employee Performance Evaluation System. In fact, it was adjudged by the Civil Service Commission as Valedictorian in the implementation of Performance Management System – Office Performance Evaluation System (PMS-OPES), likewise, BI was included among the ten selected government agencies under Administrative Order 241 issued by the Office of the President last October 2, 2008 to pilot test the implementation of the Anti-Red Tape Act of 2007 in December 2008. On October 9, 2008, Senate of the Philippines passed Senate Resolution 141 commending the Bureau of Immigration for its “decongestion project” at the BI Detention Facility in Taguig City through fast and rational resolution of cases after Commissioner Libanan formed a Deportation Unit which resolved with dispatch deportation cases. The Resolution was based on a report of the Commission on Audit citing that the decongestion effort resulted in the reduction of expenses to the government and the agony of waiting on the part of the detainee. BI was also cited as the Most Active Member-Agency by the National Law Enforcement Coordinating Committee (NALECC) for having initiated the most number of impact programs among its member agencies. Likewise, citing the reforms he initiated at BI, on December 9, 2008, Com. Libanan was given the ‘Exemplar Award’ by the “Bulong-Pulungan sa Sofitel Philippine Plaza’ and was awarded “1st Impact Award for Good Governance-Executive Category” by TV Host Marissa del Mar on March 2,2009. And then, on March 17, 2009, the City Council of Manila passed a unanimous Resolution commending the Bureau of Immigration and Com. Libanan for its anti graft efforts and for being the champion of good governance. In the lighter side of things, Commissioner Libanan is also an inborn musician. He is the 2008 Aliw Awardee for Best Instrumentalist for his guitar wizardry and Best in Major Concert, Collaboration Category.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: |
Commissioner Marcelino C. Libanan, or “Nonoy” as he is fondly called, was born in Quezon City on September 20, 1963 to Atty. Camilo C. Libanan and Pacita C. Libanan. He is married to Elda Ellado, a teacher by profession, and they are blessed with five children, Eloisa Salvacion, Sol Angelie, Stela Maris, Marian June and Brad.