No Need To Print Plane Tickets?

Wheh?!

Let me quote the whole article:

"No need to print plane tickets: DOJ says e-tickets will do

by Ina Reformina, ABS-CBN News

Posted at 09/11/2013 2:50 PM | Updated as of 09/12/2013 10:26 AM

MANILA, Philippines - There's no need to print your plane tickets anymore. Passengers at all international ports of entry and exit in the country may present their electronic tickets using their smartphones and tablets.

In a statement, Justice Secretary Leila De Lima said that the advisory from the Department of Justice (DOJ) and its attached agency, the Bureau of Immigration (BI), is effective immediately.

"This is another step to improve access to basic government services. We shall continue to work with all stakeholders to inject common sense and process logic into our systems," De Lima said.

The new policy is by virtue of Operations Order No. SBM-2013-003, entitled "Removing the Requirement of Presentation of the Printed Hard Copy of Return and/or Onward Passage Ticket," dated August 12."
'via Blog this'

Okay, thanks but... ho-hummm! This is like telling Filipino kids you need not wear a uniform to go to school. But when they reach their school's gate, they won't be allowed to enter because they are not wearing their uniforms, right? So (mothers are perplexed), they wear uniforms just the same, di ba?!

It's like this:
1. Majority of tickets are bought 2-way (meaning going & coming or "back & forth")
2. When you print, both flights are (usually) in just one sheet of paper, right?
3. Going abroad, the check-in clerk or Immigration Officer still asks for your paper return ticket
--okay, this item 3 may cease in compliance of the above order (they read and understand English)... BUT...
4. You cannot, may not, will not be allowed to enter the check-in counters without a physical ticket!

THAT #4, makes Mrs. De Lima's 'news' kind of nonsense to majority of us travelers. Why? Because those damn "jaguar" (yes, the dya-gwar, the blue guard, the guardia, the SG, the sekyu) at the airport's entrance, won't allow you to enter without showing your passport and a printed/physical ticket (as if they know how to tell if it was real or not)!

So, whether your immigration officer wants to see that return/onward ticket or not, you already have it, and that sheet of paper is almost always tucked in your passport together with your boarding pass and baggage claim checks, right?

O eh ano, magpapakahirap ka pang mag-open ng iPhone or iPad mo, just to search for the e-ticket image or record locator? Eh, ayan bitbit mo na!

Hep-hep, don't you tell me you can enter Terminal 3 without showing a ticket! To the lobby yes, but just the same, there is a "jaguar" at the cordoned-off area of your airline's check-in counter. He will look for your ticket and passport (ticket and ID if domestic flight). Unfortunately, these guards are not of the BI but of the airport authorities under DOTC (I think).

Nice try BI/DOJ, but hooo-hum. Can we please hear better news? How about demanding that ALL immigration officers be friendlier with a genuine happy smile in their faces at all times? I can even help you do that, if need be :)!

Oh well...