US envoy: No processing, issuance of visas in Cebu

CEBU, Philippines - The United States Ambassador to the Philippines Kristie Kenney said the processing and issuance of visas in Cebu is unlikely to happen.

In her recent visit to Cebu, Kenney said the US government will no longer pursue the plan because it will need hiring of more personnel who will be assigned here.

“I hate to disappoint you, but I don’t think its going to happen. Some of our economic measures realistically are going to have us consolidate our resources,” Kenney explained.

Cebu has a consular office that responds only to queries on all types of visa applications for the United States while the processing and issuance of visas are only done in the US Embassy in Manila.

“I’d love to tell you the answer is yes, but since I’ve got a president whose very focus on getting our economy moving, I don’t think he is going to be very sympathetic to my expanding our personnel,” Kenney said.

Meanwhile, Kenney announced that in May, another US military ship will visit Cebu after the Philippine Navy picked Cebu as the venue for the annual Navy exercises.

“I’ll have it in May and there will be a lot of goodwill and a chance to play basketball. It’s great for tourism and I’m telling you, everyone who comes here from America, whether they are private or our ship, they’ll love Cebu,” she said.

The latest US military ship that visited Cebu was USNS Stockholm, which arrived in March last year. — Ferliza C. Contratista/WAB (THE FREEMAN)