Rome OFWs - THUMBS DOWN TO HB 3576

Posted by Pahayag ng Migrante

Rome, Italy 10.04.2014

(Photo: Belarmino Dabalos Saguingh) 

HB 3576, a bill filed in the House of Representatives requiring overseas Filipino workers (OFWs)  to send money back to their family or dependents in the Philippines or else their passport will not be is a resurrected Marcos law.

It is stupid, unnecessary and obviously just another money-making scheme and the OFWs of Rome Italy is vehemently opposing its passage.

Section 1 of HB 3576 states that OFWs ”are required to remit regularly a portion of their foreign exchange earnings to their family or legal dependent recipient in the Philippines.”

The bill also states that “Ambassadors, Consul Generals, Chiefs of Mission, or Charge d’ Affaires are authorized to withhold the renewal or approval of the passport of an erring OFW unless proof of compliance of the remittance requirement of his financial support is submitted,”

The bill is a clear thrtowback of Marcos’ draconian EO 857 “forced remittance law”  that “drove OFWs in deeper debt.

It a slap in the face of OFWs around the world who are already knee-deep in debt and barely coping with the global economic crisis, by a representative who doubtlessly ignorant of the OFW situation.

 EO 857, which was enacted December 13, 1982, required seamen, contractors, doctors, engineers, and other professional workers, to remit 70 percent of their basic salary while domestic and other service workers should remit 50 percent.

Section 4 of EO 857 states that “the Ministry of Labor and Employment shall not approve the renewal of employment contracts and agency or service agreements unless proof of remittance of foreign exchange earnings is submitted.

Punishment also includes the non-renewal of the OFWs passport and suspension or exclusion from the list of eligible workers for overseas employment.

We strongly refuse to accept this resurrection of a law that we have already junked many years ago.

OFWs remitted more than $21.4 billion in 2012, according to the records of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. The figure has steadily risen from $20.1 billion in 2011 and $18.7 billion in 2010. This bill appears to be designed with the assurance that the remittances will be flowing into the coffers regularly, which make the bill an unnecessary burden for the migrant wotker who left the country precisely to enable them to have a chance to give their family a decent human life which is not possible to attain since the government has neglected to create jobs in the country that is driving more and more workers to flee the country in search of a better alternative.

Meantime, an e-petition opposing the said bill is circulating among OFWs worldwide.

OFWs signing petition vs. HB 3576 in, Italy 06042014 (Photo: Pahayag ng Migrante)

This bill is not favourable to all OFWs and we will make sure that it does not get approved,