New RP envoy brings hope to Pinoys in Jeddah
In the midst of criticisms raised against some Philippine missions abroad, newly-installed Philippine Consul General Ezzedin Tago is providing new hopes to Filipino workers in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Tago, who took over the Jeddah post from Consul General Pendosina N. Lomondot upon his arrival on Dec. 22, has listed down changes to ensure efficiency at the consulate and to regain the trust and confidence of Filipino workers, particularly those who have felt neglected by consular officers.
Tago presented his consular commission on Jan. 1 to Ambassador Mohamed El-Tayeb, director general of Makkah Mukarama branch of the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
One of his first actions upon assuming office was extending the working hours at the consular section to 4:30 pm. "We have to accommodate our kababayans whose only time to transact business is during their break, especially those living from faraway places," he explained.
“My instruction is that as long as our office is open until 4:30 p.m., the staff should receive applications (for the issuance of new passports or renewal of passports, etc.)," he said.
Next, he placed all personnel of the Assistance to Nationals Section in one room to make them accessible to OFWs going to the consulate for help.
Tago also promised to take a direct hand in dealing with the case of Teresita Santos, a Filipina seamstress who was gang raped by three Saudi and two Chad nationals in August 2005 in Jeddah.
The rapists were convicted and sentenced to four years in jail, with 500 lashes each.
However, Santos complained that the Philippine consulate in Jeddah deprived her of proper legal advice that almost caused her to lose claim to her private rights.
In a letter-complaint submitted to the Department of Foreign Affairs, Santos said it was only through the help of fellow OFWs that she was able to file a case to claim for her private rights and accused Assistance to Nationals personnel of blocking the hearings.
Santos had refused any help from the consulate on her case after she felt that she had been neglected.
“They not only neglected their duty but also insulted me repeatedly. You know, one of the officers was even very jubilant as he told me that I will not get any private rights. Whenever I am reminded of that ordeal, I find myself screaming," Santos said in Filipino.
Tago said it was important to win back the trust and confidence of Santos in the consulate. Just a few days into his new job, Tago has already talked to Santos about her case and she said she was willing to cooperate with the new consulate general.
To ensure transparency, Tago required all consular staff to always wear authenticated identification cards within the consulate premises. This would help do away with fixers using the name of the consulate in their illegal activities.
He said he also informed all consulate personnel to work harder and serve all OFWs, regardless of status, with utmost respect and courtesies.
“In my meetings with our staff, I have discussed with them their logistical problems and promised them my support to address these problems, but I also reminded them that we are here to serve our OFWs and compatriots," Tago said.
“I reminded them that we must serve with a smile. In the same way that we expect people to also treat us (with respect), we should also treat them ... with immediate expediency and care. We must serve with care and sense of welfare for all," he added.
The new consul general said he would not tolerate any incident where any staff of the consulate does not treat any person, any OFW, or anyone for that matter, in an unprofessional, discourteous way.
To promote camaraderie, Tago said he is encouraging sports and physical fitness activities among consulate personnel, including those from the Philippine Overseas Labor Office and Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (POLO-OWWA).
Tago has set a meeting on Jan. 18 at 4:30 p.m. with community leaders all over western Saudi Arabia to seek their support and suggestions on how to further improve consular services.
He said he will come up with a system of monitoring all cases involving Filipinos in the region to ensure that not a case would be lost by default.
"Makulit akong tao kasi I want to make sure na umuusod ang bawat kaso na pumapasok sa konsulado kaya hindi ako ang tipo ng tao na uupo lang sa aking opisina, kaya lagi ko pinupuntahan ang bawat departamento," Tago said in an interview.
Although he refused to comment on the planned Senate investigation of the alleged inefficiency and incompetence by some consular personnel. Tago said he has already taken action on some cases complained about.
The Senate probe was based on a report from the Manila-based Center for Migrant Advocacy (CMA), headed by Ellene Sana, which, apart from Santos’ case, also cited the case involving OFWs Julian Camat, Hermilo Ramos, and Napoleon Fabregas. They were sentenced to one-a-half-years in jail for alleged theft, but ended up serving four years and four months due to the negligence of the consulate in Jeddah.
Camat, Ramos and Fabregas were released in January 2007 only after independent human rights activist Abdullah Sabig, acting upon the request of the Riyadh-based advocacy group V-Team Advocacy Group and the DFA, questioned the continued detention of the trio.
According to Joseph Espiritu, patnubay.com administrator and an action officer of the V-Team Advocacy group in Riyadh and a partner of CMA, they decided to bring the complaint to the Senate last week because the DFA’s Office of Undersecretary for Migrant Workers’ Affairs, or OUMWA, kept defending the Jeddah consulate personnel instead of investigating the complaint.
Tago did not comment on the Senate investigation, but assured that he will do his very best to ensure that every case brought to the consulate would be acted upon with dispatch.
Espiritu said in a phone interview that Engineer Sabig, a Saudi human rights advocate, informed him that Prince Salman, the governor of Riyadh, informed him (Sabig) that he already assigned Dr. Ibrahim Abdul Kharim Alkhatib to investigate and check on the case of Teresita Santos. - Ronaldo Concha, GMANews.TV
Tago, who took over the Jeddah post from Consul General Pendosina N. Lomondot upon his arrival on Dec. 22, has listed down changes to ensure efficiency at the consulate and to regain the trust and confidence of Filipino workers, particularly those who have felt neglected by consular officers.
Tago presented his consular commission on Jan. 1 to Ambassador Mohamed El-Tayeb, director general of Makkah Mukarama branch of the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
One of his first actions upon assuming office was extending the working hours at the consular section to 4:30 pm. "We have to accommodate our kababayans whose only time to transact business is during their break, especially those living from faraway places," he explained.
“My instruction is that as long as our office is open until 4:30 p.m., the staff should receive applications (for the issuance of new passports or renewal of passports, etc.)," he said.
Next, he placed all personnel of the Assistance to Nationals Section in one room to make them accessible to OFWs going to the consulate for help.
Tago also promised to take a direct hand in dealing with the case of Teresita Santos, a Filipina seamstress who was gang raped by three Saudi and two Chad nationals in August 2005 in Jeddah.
The rapists were convicted and sentenced to four years in jail, with 500 lashes each.
However, Santos complained that the Philippine consulate in Jeddah deprived her of proper legal advice that almost caused her to lose claim to her private rights.
In a letter-complaint submitted to the Department of Foreign Affairs, Santos said it was only through the help of fellow OFWs that she was able to file a case to claim for her private rights and accused Assistance to Nationals personnel of blocking the hearings.
Santos had refused any help from the consulate on her case after she felt that she had been neglected.
“They not only neglected their duty but also insulted me repeatedly. You know, one of the officers was even very jubilant as he told me that I will not get any private rights. Whenever I am reminded of that ordeal, I find myself screaming," Santos said in Filipino.
Tago said it was important to win back the trust and confidence of Santos in the consulate. Just a few days into his new job, Tago has already talked to Santos about her case and she said she was willing to cooperate with the new consulate general.
To ensure transparency, Tago required all consular staff to always wear authenticated identification cards within the consulate premises. This would help do away with fixers using the name of the consulate in their illegal activities.
He said he also informed all consulate personnel to work harder and serve all OFWs, regardless of status, with utmost respect and courtesies.
“In my meetings with our staff, I have discussed with them their logistical problems and promised them my support to address these problems, but I also reminded them that we are here to serve our OFWs and compatriots," Tago said.
“I reminded them that we must serve with a smile. In the same way that we expect people to also treat us (with respect), we should also treat them ... with immediate expediency and care. We must serve with care and sense of welfare for all," he added.
The new consul general said he would not tolerate any incident where any staff of the consulate does not treat any person, any OFW, or anyone for that matter, in an unprofessional, discourteous way.
To promote camaraderie, Tago said he is encouraging sports and physical fitness activities among consulate personnel, including those from the Philippine Overseas Labor Office and Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (POLO-OWWA).
Tago has set a meeting on Jan. 18 at 4:30 p.m. with community leaders all over western Saudi Arabia to seek their support and suggestions on how to further improve consular services.
He said he will come up with a system of monitoring all cases involving Filipinos in the region to ensure that not a case would be lost by default.
"Makulit akong tao kasi I want to make sure na umuusod ang bawat kaso na pumapasok sa konsulado kaya hindi ako ang tipo ng tao na uupo lang sa aking opisina, kaya lagi ko pinupuntahan ang bawat departamento," Tago said in an interview.
Although he refused to comment on the planned Senate investigation of the alleged inefficiency and incompetence by some consular personnel. Tago said he has already taken action on some cases complained about.
The Senate probe was based on a report from the Manila-based Center for Migrant Advocacy (CMA), headed by Ellene Sana, which, apart from Santos’ case, also cited the case involving OFWs Julian Camat, Hermilo Ramos, and Napoleon Fabregas. They were sentenced to one-a-half-years in jail for alleged theft, but ended up serving four years and four months due to the negligence of the consulate in Jeddah.
Camat, Ramos and Fabregas were released in January 2007 only after independent human rights activist Abdullah Sabig, acting upon the request of the Riyadh-based advocacy group V-Team Advocacy Group and the DFA, questioned the continued detention of the trio.
According to Joseph Espiritu, patnubay.com administrator and an action officer of the V-Team Advocacy group in Riyadh and a partner of CMA, they decided to bring the complaint to the Senate last week because the DFA’s Office of Undersecretary for Migrant Workers’ Affairs, or OUMWA, kept defending the Jeddah consulate personnel instead of investigating the complaint.
Tago did not comment on the Senate investigation, but assured that he will do his very best to ensure that every case brought to the consulate would be acted upon with dispatch.
Espiritu said in a phone interview that Engineer Sabig, a Saudi human rights advocate, informed him that Prince Salman, the governor of Riyadh, informed him (Sabig) that he already assigned Dr. Ibrahim Abdul Kharim Alkhatib to investigate and check on the case of Teresita Santos. - Ronaldo Concha, GMANews.TV
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