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Press Release
February 5, 2021
Creation of DOFil will help protect Filipinos abroad, says Bong Go as he demanded justice for murdered OFW in Abu Dhabi and offered help to the family
Senator Christopher Bong Go expressed that his proposed measure creating the Department of Overseas Filipinos will be acted upon by the Senate soon to provide better services, and further protect the rights and promote the welfare of Filipinos abroad. I m not losing hope, Go said in an interview done after he provided assistance to Batasan TODA Members in Quezon City on Wednesday, February 3.
The Senator explained that the Senate Bill No. 1949, otherwise known as the Department of Overseas Filipinos (DOFil) Act of 2020, has been referred back to the Committee on Labor, Employment and Human Resources Development after the Senate Committee on Rules gave the green light for committee deliberations.
(JANSEN ROMERO / FILE PHOTO / MANILA BULLETIN)
“Per International Labor Affairs Bureau (ILAB) estimates, it’s about 60 to 70 percent (number of OFWs who backed out of repatriation after receiving vaccine),” Francia said in a message to reporters.
“The ILAB chief says this has to be validated with the POLOs (Philippine Overseas Labor Offices),” he added.
DoLE, citing POLO figures, earlier said that between 60,000 and 80,000 OFWs were supposed to be repatriated this 2021.
This means that the number of vaccinated OFWs who have opted not to return to the country, at least for now, is 36,000 to 56,000.
The Philippines has yet to launch a mass inoculation campaign against the deadly new coronavirus, although local government units are supposedly ready to carry out the effort and are just waiting for the foreigner-made anti-COVID vaccines to arrive.
Published December 30, 2020, 7:51 AM
Millions of Filipino workers have been adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic this year.
The last Job Displacement Monitoring Report released by the Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) showed that as of Oct. 25, 3.4 million workers have been displaced by the pandemic.
(JANSEN ROMERO / FILE PHOTO / MANILA BULLETIN)
These workers were adversely affected following the implementation of flexible work arrangements (FWAs) and temporary closure (TC) of 121,909 establishments from March 2020 to Oct. 25.
Of the 121, 909 establishments, 36,851 implemented FWAs affecting 1,488,285 workers. The 86,954 establishments that implemented temporary closure, on the other hand, affected 2,094,036 workers.
The report also showed that a total of 285,650 workers have been displaced nationwide from 17,300 establishments from January 2020 to October.
Sen. Christopher Lawrence ‘Bong’ Go CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
Go affirmed the need for a new line agency the Department of Overseas Filipinos or DOFil that will focus the functions and efficiently deliver services amid challenging times.
“I have been in the public service for more than two decades under President [Rodrigo] Duterte. I know if the agencies are not organized, the government service is not that fast and proper,” noted Go.
He argued that Congress must act quickly to streamline functions, improve coordination and make the government more responsive to the needs of millions of overseas Filipinos who must contend with the lingering impact of the coronavirus pandemic and the global economic downturn.