Bello Urges Labor Officials to be Proactive

Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III blasted officials and employees of the Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO) in Saudi Arabia for not helping the thousands of Filipinos who were stranded after losing their jobs because of the oil crisis. Bello cited the tragedy that befell more than 11,000 Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) who were stranded in Riyadh and Jeddah and the recent death of a Filipina rape victim.

“I won’t condone it. What happened is when they (POLO officials) arrived in a foreign country, they do nothing until they receive complaints [from Filipino migrant workers],” Bello said in a radio interview from Jeddah in Saudi Arabia. “It’s an indication of irresponsibility,” he added.

The secretary admitted that the problems were not relayed to him by government labor officials based in Saudi Arabia but through media and text messages. “I came to know about the 11,000 stranded OFWs in Saudi through media interviews. It did not come from them (POLO),” the labor chief stressed. Upon learning of the situation, he immediately ordered the recall of Rustico dela Fuente and Jainal Rasul Jr., labor attachés in Riyadh and Jeddah. The Labor and Employment Secretary said that the labor attachés were directed to come home not later than 1 October.

Bello said he has ordered POLO officials to monitor OFWs in their areas of jurisdiction 24/7 and to submit reports on a regular basis. “They should continuously monitor the whereabouts, the welfare and the status of our foreign migrant workers. They should not act only when there is a problem, that’s unacceptable,” the DOLE chief stressed. ●