Actor Tony Labrusca on Friday, January 4, issued an apology following an incident involving him and an immigration official at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).
On Twitter, Labrusca apologized over “letting my emotions get the better of me” during his conversation with a NAIA staff over an immigration policy called “Balikbayan Privilege” which is “exclusively given to former Filipinos naturalized abroad and their spouse and children who are traveling with them”.
However, since Labrusca was not with his mother, Angel Jones, he was only allowed to stay in the country for 30 days which the actor misunderstood.
“I want to extend my sincerest apology to the superior Immigration Officer (IO) who was on duty and I had a talk with yesterday morning,” Labrusca said.
“My biggest mistake perhaps was letting my emotions get the better of me and again I’m sorry,” he added.
Labrusca also admitted to being frustrated during his meeting with the immigration officer and explained that he was not aware of the grounds of the policy.
“After lining up and crossing the immigration, I went up to the superior and we ended up going inside an enclosed space inside her office to discuss privately. I admit I was a bit frustrated and that I asked why I was only given 30 days to stay in the country this time,” Labrusca said.
“I was unaware of the policy that because I was not with my mother, I did not qualify for a Balikbayan stamp,” he said.
While the actor admitted that he was frustrated, he denied calling the immigration officer “stupid” and bragging about being a celebrity.
Labrusca added that his long flight from Canada to Manila was not an excuse for his behavior.
“It was very upsetting for me. And I’m sorry that I somehow took my frustrations out on the Officer. But never did I ever call anyone stupid, nor an idiot much less brag about being a celebrity. I know for a fact that the officer is merely doing her job,” he said.
— Tony Labrusca (@tonythesharky) January 4, 2019
