House panel takes up more protection for OFWs

Members of the House committee on overseas workers affairs agreed on Wednesday to consolidate five bills seeking to amend Republic Act No. 8042, or the 1995 Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipinos Act, with a view of providing further protection to Filipinos working abroad.

The proposals include having a legal attaché office in the Middle East countries to provide legal assistance to distressed Filipinos embroiled in legal battles under House Bill No. 628, and institutionalizing a selection process for additional members to the governing boards of the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration under HB 699.

HBs 700 and 769 both propose higher standard of protection for migrant workers and their families while HB 701 provides for replenishment to the legal assistance fund for OFWs in distress situations.

Under HB 769, South Cotabato Rep. Arthur Pinggoy wants recruitment agencies to put up a performance bond of P100,000 for the deployment of OFWs. The bill also extends at least P50,000 loan to families of OFWs through the Migrant Workers Loan Guarantee Fund.

Pasig Rep. Roman Romulo, vice chairman of the committee, said a technical working group would combine the proposals in one bill.

Ellene Sana, executive director of the non-governmental organization Center for Migrant Advocacy, lauded Valenzuela Rep. Rex Gatchalian for his concerns for the welfare of OFWs through his sponsorship of HBs 699, 700 and 701.

Sana and Erwin Puhawan of the Kanlungan Center Foundation particularly pushed for HB 699 as they underscored the need for a transparent selection process in the appointment of a representative of the OFW sector to the POEA and OWWA boards.

In the course of the discussions, congressmen expressed surprise that even the OFW representative to the OWWA, Eduardo Bellido, was not aware how he was chosen by President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo to the board.

Bellido said OWWA board has 12 members: seven from government, and five from the private sector. The five private representatives come from the recruitment, civic, land –based OFWs, women, and labor sectors.

Sana and Puhawan urged the congressmen to provide a clear guideline or criteria on the OFW nominees to be submitted to the President to represent migrant workers in the board.

Sana cited cases where previous representatives of OFWs in the board was not a even a migrant worker. “Another case is the (OFW) representative in the board is still working abroad. For that reason, she fails to attend the board meeting in Manila," she said.

Puhawan observed that a majority of board members come from government. He suggested a reverse, where migrant workers dominate the board membership.

Gatchalian said while he is not questioning the power and wisdom of the President to appoint members of the board, he fully supports the position taken by the NGO leaders.

“Who else knows best with regard to the issue of OFWs, but the OFW itself," Gatchalian pointed out.

He said his proposal does not mean increasing the number of the POEA and OWWA board members but to modify the selection process to make sure that only qualified people represent the migrant sector in the policy-making body. – Fidel Jimenez, GMANews.TV

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