3 buwang palugit, binigay sa mga Pinoy sa Iraq
Dalawa hanggang tatlong buwang palugit ang taning ng US Central Command para sa pag-alis sa Iraq ng mga ilegal na manggagawa. Sakop ng kautusan ang mahigit 6,000 Pinoy na nagtratrabaho sa nasabing bansa. Nagpa-Patrol, Jeff Canoy. TV Patrol, Martes, Hulyo 27, 2010
07/27/2010 10:10 PM
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P10,000 loan
Huh! Nahihibang na ba ang Pilipinas na bigyan ng P10,000 loan ang bawat manggagawa na uuwi galing ng Iraq? Saan sasapat ang perang yan para magamit nila sa pag-uumpisa nila ng bagong buhay sa Pilipinas. Bakit di nyo bigyan ng tig-isang daang piso o higit pa ng malaman nyo kung di papayag ang mga mangagawa na magumpisa ng kani-kanilang business sa Pinas? Sa P10,000 loan para ka lang nagbigay ng kendi sa isang sanggol ah! Tapos pahihirapan nyo pa ang mga binigyan nyo ng loan na magbayad agad-agad kahit wala pang pera. Ginigipit nyo ang mga mangagagawa. Di rin naiiba yan sa 5-6 di ba? Di ba kayo kinikilabutan nyang P10,000 loan lang ang ipapahiram nyo sa mga mawawalan ng trabaho? Samantalang malaking pera ang naipapasok ng mga OFW sa Pinas?
SENDING MR. CIMATU IN IRAQ IS USELESS
OUR GOVERNMENT SENT MR. CIMATU TO CHECK AND ASSES THE SITUATUION HERE IN IRAQ,, SAME THING WILL HAPPEN,, MR. CIMATU A PRO GOVERNMENT AND WILL RECOMMEND NOT TO LIFT THE BAN!!!
MaYnaRd B. GadiaNE (AusTraLia)
kung maPa uwi nGa anG mGa OFW sa Iraq saNa TuLunGan sila na makahanaP ng traBaho sa iBanG bansa o kahit saan basTa maGkaroon siLa anG trabaHo pampaLiT para maiBuHay sa kanilanG Pamilya uLi..
LIFT THE BAN
Sa aming mahal na Presidente Noynoy Aquino nakikiusap po kaming mga Filipino workers dito sa Iraq na sana dinggin nyo ang aming hinaing sa inyo. Ako po ay isang carpintero dito sa Iraq na sumasahod ng $900 sa isang buwan, dahil po sa Iraq napagpatuloy ko ang pagpapaaral sa tatlo kong anak sa highschool at dalawa sa elementary at naibibigay ko narin ang lahat ng kanilang pangangailangan sa araw araw kaya Masaya po ako nung ako ay mapunta dito. Ngayong pong pauuwiin na lahat ng mga Filipino dito sa Iraq ano nalang po ang gagawin ko sa pamilya ko babalik na naman kami sa tatlong kahig isang tuka, sana po bigyan nyo naman po ng pagkakataon na makaahon ang mga mahihirap sa kabuhayan at ibang pamilya na mga naririto na nagsasakripisyo para matustusan ang lahat ng mga pangangailangan ng pamilya namin, isang taon na po akong nagtratrabaho dito tahimik na po ang Iraq wala nang gulo dito. Sana po po Pangulong Noynoy Aguino dinggin nyo ang hinaing ako po at iba Filipino workers dito sa Iraq ay nagmamakaawang sana po lift nyo na ang ban bago mapauwi lahat nga mga Pilipino dito.
Maraming salamat po.
LIFT THE BA
Sa aming mahal na Presidente Noynoy Aquino nakikiusap po kaming mga Filipino workers dito sa Iraq na sana dinggin nyo ang aming hinaing sa inyo. Ako po ay isang carpintero dito sa Iraq na sumasahod ng $900 sa isang buwan, dahil po sa Iraq napagpatuloy ko ang pagpapaaral sa tatlo kong anak sa highschool at dalawa sa elementary at naibibigay ko narin ang lahat ng kanilang pangangailangan sa araw araw kaya Masaya po ako nung ako ay mapunta dito. Ngayong pong pauuwiin na lahat ng mga Filipino dito sa Iraq ano nalang po ang gagawin ko sa pamilya ko babalik na naman kami sa tatlong kahig isang tuka, sana po bigyan nyo naman po ng pagkakataon na makaahon ang mga mahihirap sa kabuhayan at ibang pamilya na mga naririto na nagsasakripisyo para matustusan ang lahat ng mga pangangailangan ng pamilya namin, isang taon na po akong nagtratrabaho dito tahimik na po ang Iraq wala nang gulo dito. Sana po po Pangulong Noynoy Aguino dinggin nyo ang hinaing ako po at iba Filipino workers dito sa Iraq ay nagmamakaawang sana po lift nyo na ang ban bago mapauwi lahat nga mga Pilipino dito.
Maraming salamat po.
salamat sa ABS CBN
salamat sa pagbibigay ng pansin sa aming hinihiling, kung wala po kayo'y malamang napauwi na kami bago pa malaman ng lahat ang aming hinaing.
pero hinihingi parin po namin sainyo, na kung pagpalain ng diyos, sana po'y madalaw nyo rin po kami dito at ma-expose po sa taong bayan ang aming mga sinasabi.
kami po ay handang makipagtulungan sainyo sa pagpapahayag ng katotohanan dito sa iraq.
hanggang doon nalang po ba?
wala pong kabuluhan ang sinasabi po nilang loan na ipapamahagi sa amin na nandito sa iraq. sapat na po ang kinikita namin dito para mapakain at mapag aral ang aming pamilya. bakit hindi nyo nalang ipamahagi yang perang iyan sa mga pinoy na mas nangangailangan diyan sa pinas? total, sabi ng ating mahal na pangulo,wag gastusin ang pera ng bayan sa walang silbing proyekto o pangkabuhayan. ang tanging hinihiling namin ay ang pansin ng ating gobyerno sa tunay na kalagayan ng iraq. bakit po hindi nyo muna subukang magpadala ng representative dito sa iraq para matukoy ang tunay na kalagayan ng siguridad at kalagayan ng mamamayang pilipino dito.
wag naman po sana ipagwalang bahala ang ginagawa naming sakripisyo dito para sa aming mga pamilya at para na rin sa ating bansa. wag naman po sana maging sakim.
iyon lamang po ang aming hinihiling. bigyang pagkakataon po ang mga ofw dito sa iraq at sana po'y tanggalin na po ang travel ban.
nananawagan po kami sainyo mahal naming pangulo. bigyang pansin po kami dito.
From an OFW
The touted P10,000 loan for OFW’s returning from Iraq is a joke.
Atty. Lacierda, the government’s “concern” does not translate to “protection.” The ban is not protection, it is curtailment of my right to self-determination. Concern + Measures & Procedures = Protection.
There is an obvious disparity in terminology used here. In the government’s book, PROTECTION means curtailment of the right to self-determination. Hence, what better way to PROTECT Filipinos than to stop and BAN them.
A simple analogy will be like a father telling his kid “Son, so you don’t get hit by a car, don’t cross the street!” Yeah, I know, Iraq is a lot more complicated than that, but hear this, wouldn’t it be better if the government really do its job by crafting measures and procedures to safeguard OFW’s instead of placing a ban one after the other? My goodness, soon it might even impose a ban on the Gulf of Aden so Filipino seafarers will not be kidnapped!
Real protection is being pro-active not restrictive! As I have said in my previous posts, the reality is that there will be more conflict zones in the near future, will the government impose ban on them too? Am I being hypothetical here? Of course I am, but guess what, I am offering suggestions and from my professional point of view I think they are doable and workable, the government just got to have that sincerity to make it happen. I have mentioned these before but it all fell on deaf ears, for those who care, please read on...
Is the travel ban even constitutional? We know we cannot always leave it to the State as far as our individual economic welfare is concerned, but the State has already failed these OFW's, that is why they are there even though the risks are high. They decided and took that leap into the fire just so they can feed their families. Now, the State failed them again with the ban. Some of them have been in Iraq for 6 years for goodness sake! Some who ventured home have to pay for escort service, falling prey to corrupt government officials. What a shame!
It may be worth mentioning here, as there seems to be no other means due to the red tape (yes Sir, I have tried going up the chain) that a lot of embassies of foreign governments are returning to Iraq. This is a good indicator that things are not as risky as a few years back. Another good indicator is the influx of foreign airlines operating flights in Iraq's many airports. Just the other day, Saudi Arabia will resume flights to Iraq. For a number of years now, there have been direct flights to Europe too.
With these positive developments, it is high time that the Philippine government reconsider its travel ban to Iraq. These foreign airlines will facilitate entry of Filipinos with so many points of embarkation points now to Iraq. One other thing, the travel ban is supposed to protect Filipinos when what it only does are 1-breed corruption, 2-rise in the number of undocumented workers, 3- hindering growth and opportunity, 4-denying Pinoys the right to self-determination, and 5-leaving Filipinos without representation in Iraq. Wouldn't it be better instead if the government will task its concerned agencies to do their job? How about coming up with a minimum safeguard for OFW's in conflict zones?
The reality is this, more and more conflict zones will arise, having said this, will the government impose a ban on all of these up and coming conflict zones (ever heard of the Gulf of Aden where more Pinoys got kidnapped than in Iraq, why not ban that vast body of water from Pinoys)? This sweeping and inconsiderate action will definitely restrict Filipinos and deny them of opportunities.
The DFA can have an embassy staff trained on security and dedicate him/her to doing security assessments and liaison with security agencies of the host country. Please don't get in to that lack of budget thing, after all OFW's are the modern-day heroes, right? If so, don't they deserve only the best that the government can do, if not, then the hero tag is just lip service!
Further, the DOLE can have its labor attache also trained on security so he can require and review an employer's personnel security program and its risk mitigation and emergency preparedness plan, then there will be periodic audit of these programs and plans.
Likewise, have OFW's deploying into conflict zones go through a risk awareness and safety program so that Security will be inculcated in them. Having been trained, the OFW's can report to the labor attache if there are any violations in the security and safety program of their employer, which could be a ground for breach of contract (as per agreed during the labor attache's employer accreditation process). Then there is that war insurance currently in place.
Summing it up, these are doable measures and could really be construed as "protection" for our modern-day Heroes, not the current "protection by ban." Or may be I am just imagining things because surely our government officials would have thought of these already, but then again, may be considered them not worth doing at all? How about the Aquino government, why not give it a shot? If not, tens of thousands of Pinoys will soon be coming home and their families will go hungry!
Nightmare or death sentence?
The term nightmare is an understatement, it is a death sentence! For most of these Filipinos, being in Iraq or Afghanistan is a go-for-broke matter. Just think about this, why go into a conflict zone just to earn money and feed the family? The ban is an irresponsible and sweeping action of the government, actually, I stand corrected, it is INACTION!
The government would rather sweep the issue under the rug when it could have easily crafted and implemented contingency measures to really protect our modern-day heroes. Yes, there certainly are better options for a country to "protect" its citizen than stopping them from going abroad and feeding their families!
The travel ban is the height of the government's irresponsibility and insensitivity to the plight of its citizens. Even the US, with so many enemies don't impose that. Instead they issue reminders and warnings (like the OSAC), to make sure its citizens are given the "RIGHT INFORMATION" so they can make "INFORMED DECISIONS." The ban is the Philippine government's INDECISION!
What now Filipinos? Think hard, does our government really have our best interest when it imposed the ban? Or was it just after its political survival? I know the answer too well... I was there!