OFWs urge to participate in housing fund hearing

Email this | Email the Editor | Print | Digg this | Add to del.icio.us MANILA, Philippines - A legislator who filed a bill requiring government to collect housing contributions from overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) has urged them to participate in the proposed law’s deliberations.

In an interview held Saturday, Northern Samar Rep. Emil Ong said that he “encourages the participation of OFWs by attending the hearings or sending their position papers through fax or email."

According to Ong, a technical working group has already consolidated three related bills regarding the Home Development Mutual Fund, also known as the Pag-Ibig Fund, which is allotted for employees’ housing needs.

One of these bills include House Bill No 1097, which was filed by Ong.

The proposed law requires all employees of the Social Security System (SSS), Government Service Insurance System (GSIS), members of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippine National Police (PNP), and other working groups with or without employer contributions to contribute to the Pag-Ibig funds.

Mandatory housing contribution another exaction

Edgar Cadano, secretary general of OFW group the Kapatiran sa Gitnang Silangan (KGS) expressed opposition to Ong’s bill.

“HB 1097 should automatically be trashed. Enough of state exactions especially these days when rice, bread, gas and oil prices are going up while the values of our remittances are dropping like the credibility of the present Philippine president (Gloria Arroyo),’ Cadano said in a statement.

“Drafting a bill that would hold us to pay a mandatory Pag-Ibig fee at this most exacting time is most revolting. The House representatives should know better our real situation," he said.

Instead of drafting such bills, Cadano said the House of Representatives should create a law that would provide low-cost homes for all Filipinos similar to Gawad Kalinga projects.

“If private groups can do it without exacting money from the homeless and poor Filipinos like the majority of the overseas Filipino workers in Saudi Arabia, then the author should be ashamed of his acts in filing this bill," he said.

Proposed law redundant

Meanwhile, John Leonard Monterona, a regional coordinator of OFW group Migrante in the Middle East, said Ong’s bill is redundant because an existing housing program for OFWs is already in place.

He said that the mandatory coverage of OFWs is no more needed as there is already an existing program called the Pag-IBIG Overseas Program (POP).

Under this voluntary savings program, OFWs, immigrants and naturalized citizens have the opportunity to save money and the chance to avail of a housing loan of as much as P 2 million.

“Voluntary, not compulsory, membership to Pag-IBIG would give leeway to OFW families to choose between getting an aching housing loan or simply build-their-own home at low cost," Monterona said.

However, Ong defended his intention in proposing the draft law, explaining that this will help OFWs to have their own decent houses in the future.

“That is why the hearing is open to public so we can get all important inputs. Join us in the hearing and we will listen to them," the legislator said. - FIDEL R. JIMENEZ GMANews.TV

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