A social media post attributed to a certain Roselyn Sabalo has sparked online outrage and concern among travelers after she shared what she described as her “worst experience” at a Philippine airport involving an alleged case of passport tampering. Although the original post can no longer be located, excerpts of her story have been widely reposted by social media users and influencers, quickly going viral.
In the post, Sabalo recounted being unable to board her international flight due to a tear on the upper-right part of her passport. She claims that the damage was not present during her departure from Davao airport but appeared after her passport was temporarily taken by airport staff.
“Nag isip-isip ako kung ipopost ko ba ito o hindi pero kailangan ishare ko itong pinaka worst experience ko dito sa airport natin sa Pinas,” the post began.
According to her, she was asked to pay a certain fee at the airport. During that process, her passport was out of her sight. When it was returned, she was shocked to find it damaged. “May binayaran lang ako saglit tapos pagbalik ko nashock nalang ako na di daw kami pwede makaalis kasi daw may punit passport ko,” she wrote.
Sabalo added that she wasn’t the only one affected. Two others from her international group tour were also denied departure for the same reason—each having tears on their passport pages. “Nakaka alarma kasi tatlo kaming hindi nakaalis sa group tour international, same case, may punit ang passport,” she noted.
She issued a warning to fellow travelers, urging them to never take their eyes off their passports, especially when dealing with airport staff. “HUWAG NYO IIWAN NG DI NYO NAKIKITA ANG PASSPORTS nyo,” she emphasized.
While there has been no official confirmation of the incident, the story has drawn comparisons to the controversial “laglag bala” (bullet planting) scam at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), which first made headlines in 2015. The scam involved bullets allegedly being planted in passengers’ luggage, often leading to extortion attempts.
Earlier this year, airport security concerns resurfaced after a senior citizen reported being barred from boarding due to a bullet casing allegedly found in her bag. Three Office for Transportation Security (OTS) personnel were dismissed following the incident, though authorities maintain there is no resurgence of the “tanim bala” scheme.
