Press Release
July 26, 2006

SENATOR JINGGOY ESTRADA SETS PROBE OF OWWA FUNDS IN THE AFTERMATH OF THE LEBANON CRISIS

Senator Jinggoy Ejercito Estrada sets an investigation on the alleged failure of the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) after the agency failed to release enough funds to evacuate thousands of Filipino workers from Lebanon.

Estrada, chairman of the Senate Committee on Labor and Employment, said the OWWA allegedly had a hard time releasing funds for the repatriation of at least 30,000 overseas Filipino workers (OFW) that were displaced by the fighting in Lebanon between Israeli troops and Hezbollah militiamen.

He said that he will file a resolution to start the probe and summon the officials of the OWWA and the departments of labor and foreign affairs to find out what happened in the Lebanon evacuation plan.

Fr. Agustin Advincula, who runs the Church of the Miraculous Medal in Beirut, where thousands of desperate Filipino domestic helpers in Lebanon have sought shelter from Israeli bombs, had expressed concern over the lack of funds for the repatriation of the overseas Filipino workers (OFWs).

The responsibility of the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration is to give welfare assistance to OFWs and their families. It is the duty of OWWA to fund the evacuation of OFWs abroad in case of emergencies, Estrada said.

Estrada said that it is an irony that the DFA admitted that the government has no money for the evacuation of workers from Lebanon, yet Malacañang can easily released funds for the junket or travel allowances of top Palace officials and local government officials who accompany Mrs. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in her trips abroad.

Kawawa naman talaga ang mga OFWs na nangangailangan ng tulong, pag ubos na ng Malacañang ang pera dahil sa mga junket ng mga opisyal, Estrada said.

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