Press Release
January 17, 2018

SEN. EMMANUEL D. PACQUIAO
SPONSORSHIP SPEECH - OFW HANDBOOK

MR. PRESIDENT, MAJORITY FLOOR LEADER, FELLOW PUBLIC SERVANTS, MAAYONG HAPON SA TANAN.

I STAND BEFORE THIS AUGUST CHAMBER TO RECOMMEND THE APPROVAL OF SENATE BILL NO. 192 UNDER COMMITTEE REPORT 222 FROM THE COMMITTEE ON LABOR, EMPLOYMENT AND HUMAN RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT JOINT WITH THE COMMITTEES ON FOREIGN RELATIONS; AND FINANCE,

"AN ACT MANDATING THE PHILIPPINE OVERSEAS EMPLOYMENT ADMINISTRATION (POEA) TO PUBLISH, DISSEMINATE AND UPDATE A HANDBOOK ON THE RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF MIGRANT WORKERS, AMENDING FOR THE PURPOSE REPUBLIC ACT NO. 8042, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE "MIGRANT WORKERS AND OVERSEAS FILIPINOS ACT OF 1995," AS AMENDED."

I am grateful to Senator Joel Villanueva, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Labor, Employment and Human Resources Development, for allowing me to be the Sub Committee Chairman to focus on this specific concern of the OFWs.

Noon pa man, malapit na sa puso ko ang mga OFW. Marami akong kamag-anak, kapitbahay, at kaibigan na mga OFW. Bawat isa sa atin ay may kamag-anak o kakilalang OFW.

Maraming problema ng mga OFWs ang dinudulog sa atin. Karamihan sa problema ay pwedeng masolusyonan sa pamamagitan ng pagbigay ng tama at sapat na impormasyon.

Right at the start, we ask:

"Is there a need to legislate the publication and dissemination of OFW handbook to OFWs?"

Ang Integrated Seafarers of the Philippines ay mayroong trainers' handbook for seafarers which are given for free, salamat sa mga corporate sponsors. OWWA has printed a guidebook on OFW. Mayroon din po tayong Overseas Filipino workers na Trainer's handbook mula sa POEA pero para lamang ito sa mga nag-coconduct ng training. Mayroon din po tayong guidebook for OFWs by POEA which was commercially produced by private individuals and corporate sponsors. Iilan lamang ang nabigyan at hindi consistent ang government agencies sa pagbigay ng handbooks para sa OFWs.

Please take note that Republic Act 8042 is already 23 years old. Republic Act 8042, Section 6, states that "The POEA MAY undertake other programs or resort to other modes of information and dissemination campaign."

Dito tayo may problema kasi MAY ang nakalagay. Ibig sabihin pwede nilang gawin, pwede ding hindi. Ang gusto nating mangyari, mabigyan ng tama at sapat na impormasyon ang mga OFWs.

Once we legislate the publication and dissemination of printed handbooks to OFWs, it would no longer be optional for POEA to do the same. It would no longer be dependent on the availability of budget from private individuals and corporate sponsors. It will have proper allocation for its implementation.

The POEA Documentation of Overseas Filipino Workers in terms of Contracts Processed show that there are 2,552,879 OFWs in 2016 whose contracts were processed. This is an 8.93 percent increase compared to the 2,343,692 OFWs in 2015. The 2016 data of POEA show that the TOP 10 Destinations of Deployed Landbased Overseas Filipino Workers are:

1. SAUDI ARABIA
2. UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
3. SINGAPORE
4. QATAR
5. HONG KONG
6. KUWAIT
7. TAIWAN
8. MALAYSIA
9. OMAN
10. BAHRAIN

Makikita natin na top destinations ng Deployed Landbased OFWs ay mga MIDDLE EAST COUNTRIES.

Ang mga news reports na nakalap natin ay iilan lamang sa napakaraming kaso ng pang-aabuso sa mga OFWs sa Middle East.

Kahit pa binibigyan sila ng pre-departure training, sigurado naman po na hindi nila maaalala lahat ng impormasyon na ibinibigay sa kanila. Pero kapag may HANDBOOK sila na mahahawakan, meron silang kopya ng directory ng mga embassy na pwede nilang matawagan sakaling magkaproblema sila.

MR. PRESIDENT, LET US REMEMBER THAT NOT ALL OFWs HAVE GADGETS AND ACCESS TO INTERNET. It is the obligation of our government to take care of the millions of OFWs all over the world by providing STANDARD PRINTED INFORMATION.

Let me quote the statement of MR. JEFFREY CORTAZAR, Director IV, of the National Reintegration Center for OFWs, Department of Labor and Employment during the Technical Working Group,

"While there are a lot of information materials that are being developed by all concerned agencies engaged in the overseas employment program for government, a law will further strengthen government's resolve and obligation and commitment to empower OFWs. Information is power. I suppose that when one goes to the ring, you need as much information of your adversaries, both the strengths and the weaknesses before you start the match. And now it will be a matter of obligation for government to provide that critical and timely information and to protect them against a multitude of vulnerabilities such as illegal trafficking, illegal recruitment, contract substitution and the like. We have seen a lot of problems being faced by the OFWs and the culprit is that they lacked information."

Mr. President, our migrant workers are vulnerable to abuses. We do not want them to be powerless. We want to equip them with the necessary information that they can access once they are out there in the global marketplace.

We recognize that "IGNORANCE OF THE LAW EXCUSES NO ONE." We want our OFWs to be fully informed so that they would not be ignorant of the law, as well as their rights and responsibilities. With the access to right information, they can avoid the traps of manipulation. The OFW Handbook will serve as their protection from abuses.

Mr. President, the primary purpose of this bill is to create a state-issued standard reference FOR OUR OFWs.

THE OFW HANDBOOK will be a CONVENIENT REFERENCE that will:

  • emphasize the rights and responsibilities of OFWs,

  • inform them with their recourses under common difficult situations faced by them while abroad; and

  • provide a directory of relevant various government agencies

Mr. President, as we continue to deploy millions of OFWs every year, let us be one in providing our MODERN HEROES one practical help: A HANDBOOK loaded with the information they need to SURVIVE and THRIVE in the global marketplace.

I NOW HUMBLY INVITE ALL OF YOU, MY ESTEEMED COLLEAGUES TO FULLY SUPPORT OUR MODERN HEROES WHO DESERVE ALL THE PROTECTION FROM THE GOVERNMENT BY PASSING SENATE BILL NO. 192. I BELIEVE WE ARE ALL CHAMPIONS OF THE OFWS.

DAGHANG SALAMAT UG MAAYONG HAPON SA TANAN.

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