As I was writing how I would miss the Repertory Philippines production of Sweeney Todd in the wee hours of the morning of 18 November 2009, it suddenly struck me that there was a possibility that we would be off for several days.
When it was finally confirmed later that afternoon that we were going to have a few days off and I got the permission to leave the country of Singapore, I rushed to Lucky Plaza on Orchard Road to get a Cebu Pacific airplane ticket, only to find out that I need an Overseas Employment Certificate or OEC from the Philippine Embassy in Singapore in order to get back to the country.
The requirements of a passport, contract, employment pass and POEA form were all at home, so I had to rush back to Tiong Bahru where I was based and then line up for a taxi, which meant that I arrived at the Philippine Embassy in Singapore at Nasim Road at 4.40pm, just a few minutes before the closing time of 5pm.
I was only able to finish the OEC application form and submit the requirements at Window 3 around eight minutes later, which set my heart pounding from the adrenaline rush. Before 5pm and after paying S$5.50, I had the Overseas Employment Certificate or OEC, which allowed me to buy a ticket for the earliest flight the next day.
Thanks so much to the efficient staff of the Philippine Embassy in Singapore. For inquiries, please call 6733.2991
source
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Party of migrant Filipinos barred from 2010 partylist polls
In a six-page decision issued this week, the Commission on Elections rejected an appeal of Migrante Sectoral Party to rejoin the partylist elections in 2010 and affirmed an earlier decision that delisted 25 other organizations.
Unless the Supreme Court trashes the twin-rulings of the Comelec, Migrante may not be able to join contenders in the partylist elections next year. Contenders win a seat in the House of Representatives if they win at least two-percent of all partylist votes cast.
Under the partylist law which seeks to empower marginalized and underrepresented sectors, partylist organizations that lose in two straight elections should be delisted. Migrante lost in its first run for partylist representation in 2004. But it did not participate in the 2007 elections and informed the Comelec about it.
The Comelec insists that Migrante's non-participation in the 2007 elections also means defaulting and losing the same elections. How can Migrante lose an election which it did not contest and join? This Comelec ruling on Migrante is obviously wrong and we look forward to hearing Migrante take its issue before the Supreme Court.
Migrante is the Philippines' most well-known organization of overseas Filipino workers. The adverse rulings of the Comelec shocked its members worldwide as they have actually prepared their organization to join and win in the 2010 elections. Their quest is to elect the first OFW representative in the House of Representatives and give themselves a voice in the Philippine Congress.
An inside story
According to a source, Comelec en banc allegedly did not bother to review its original ruling, Resolution 8679, delisting Migrante and 25 other organizations before it was signed.
The source said that several Comelec commissioners were supposedly apologetic to Migrante in private for wrongfully including the OFW organization because it was truly a mistake which they overlooked and failed to correct.
Update
Connie Bragas Regalado, chairperson of Migrante, said in a statement that OFWs are disappointed but undeterred by the new Comelec ruling.
Migrante will file tomorrow at the Supreme Court an urgent petition for a temporary restraining order, among others.
"We are determined to challenge this latest affront to our OFWs’ collective desire to finally have a say in government ," said Regalado.
source
Unless the Supreme Court trashes the twin-rulings of the Comelec, Migrante may not be able to join contenders in the partylist elections next year. Contenders win a seat in the House of Representatives if they win at least two-percent of all partylist votes cast.
Under the partylist law which seeks to empower marginalized and underrepresented sectors, partylist organizations that lose in two straight elections should be delisted. Migrante lost in its first run for partylist representation in 2004. But it did not participate in the 2007 elections and informed the Comelec about it.
The Comelec insists that Migrante's non-participation in the 2007 elections also means defaulting and losing the same elections. How can Migrante lose an election which it did not contest and join? This Comelec ruling on Migrante is obviously wrong and we look forward to hearing Migrante take its issue before the Supreme Court.
Migrante is the Philippines' most well-known organization of overseas Filipino workers. The adverse rulings of the Comelec shocked its members worldwide as they have actually prepared their organization to join and win in the 2010 elections. Their quest is to elect the first OFW representative in the House of Representatives and give themselves a voice in the Philippine Congress.
An inside story
According to a source, Comelec en banc allegedly did not bother to review its original ruling, Resolution 8679, delisting Migrante and 25 other organizations before it was signed.
The source said that several Comelec commissioners were supposedly apologetic to Migrante in private for wrongfully including the OFW organization because it was truly a mistake which they overlooked and failed to correct.
Update
Connie Bragas Regalado, chairperson of Migrante, said in a statement that OFWs are disappointed but undeterred by the new Comelec ruling.
Migrante will file tomorrow at the Supreme Court an urgent petition for a temporary restraining order, among others.
"We are determined to challenge this latest affront to our OFWs’ collective desire to finally have a say in government ," said Regalado.
source
Remittances surged 8.8% to $1.4B
Total for first nine months up 4.2% at $12.8B
By Michelle Remo
MANILA, Philippines - Remittances sent to the Philippines surged in September as the sustained growth in demand for Filipino workers debunked earlier fears that the global economic crunch would slow down the inflow of money from abroad.
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas reported Monday that remittances from Filipinos based overseas rose 8.6 percent to $1.4 billion in September from $1.33 billion a year ago.
The latest figure brought total remittances in the first nine months to $12.8 billion, up 4.2 percent from $12.27 billion in the same period last year.
Given the robust growth of remittances as of September, the BSP said the official projection of a 4-percent full-year growth in remittances for 2009 was attainable. Analysts said the increase in remittances might even accelerate in the fourth quarter when overseas Filipinos send more money in time for Christmas.
“Steady remittance flows were shored up by the continued strong global demand for professional and skilled Filipino workers,” BSP Governor Amando Tetangco Jr. said.
Remittances in the first nine months came mostly from Filipinos based in the United States, Canada, Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom, Japan, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates, Italy and Germany.
Tetangco also credited the government’s earlier move to sign labor deals with other countries for the steady rise in remittances. The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) earlier forged agreements with counterparts in countries like Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Canada, Australia, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan, which committed to hire Filipinos to partly fill up their labor requirements.
“The deployment of Filipino workers abroad was anticipated to increase given the continuing hiring arrangements between the Philippines with existing and non-traditional labor markets,” Tetangco said.
According to the POEA, job orders for Filipino workers by foreign employers reached 226,260 from January to October. Most of the jobs were related to services, production and transport.
Tetangco added that Filipinos abroad now have easier access to banking services that allow them to send money to their families and friends in the Philippines much faster than before. More and more Philippine-based banks have either opened branches abroad, especially in places where many Filipino workers are situated or tied up with foreign remittance centers to serve the Filipino market.
Remittances are a closely watched economic indicator as these largely fuel household consumption, which accounts for 70 percent of the country’s economy.
But while the rise in remittances is hailed by economic officials, critics said the country’s dependence on remittances served as a reminder of the failure of the domestic economy to provide sufficient employment for Filipinos. Unemployment rate in the Philippines stood at 7.6 percent in July.
source
By Michelle Remo
MANILA, Philippines - Remittances sent to the Philippines surged in September as the sustained growth in demand for Filipino workers debunked earlier fears that the global economic crunch would slow down the inflow of money from abroad.
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas reported Monday that remittances from Filipinos based overseas rose 8.6 percent to $1.4 billion in September from $1.33 billion a year ago.
The latest figure brought total remittances in the first nine months to $12.8 billion, up 4.2 percent from $12.27 billion in the same period last year.
Given the robust growth of remittances as of September, the BSP said the official projection of a 4-percent full-year growth in remittances for 2009 was attainable. Analysts said the increase in remittances might even accelerate in the fourth quarter when overseas Filipinos send more money in time for Christmas.
“Steady remittance flows were shored up by the continued strong global demand for professional and skilled Filipino workers,” BSP Governor Amando Tetangco Jr. said.
Remittances in the first nine months came mostly from Filipinos based in the United States, Canada, Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom, Japan, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates, Italy and Germany.
Tetangco also credited the government’s earlier move to sign labor deals with other countries for the steady rise in remittances. The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) earlier forged agreements with counterparts in countries like Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Canada, Australia, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan, which committed to hire Filipinos to partly fill up their labor requirements.
“The deployment of Filipino workers abroad was anticipated to increase given the continuing hiring arrangements between the Philippines with existing and non-traditional labor markets,” Tetangco said.
According to the POEA, job orders for Filipino workers by foreign employers reached 226,260 from January to October. Most of the jobs were related to services, production and transport.
Tetangco added that Filipinos abroad now have easier access to banking services that allow them to send money to their families and friends in the Philippines much faster than before. More and more Philippine-based banks have either opened branches abroad, especially in places where many Filipino workers are situated or tied up with foreign remittance centers to serve the Filipino market.
Remittances are a closely watched economic indicator as these largely fuel household consumption, which accounts for 70 percent of the country’s economy.
But while the rise in remittances is hailed by economic officials, critics said the country’s dependence on remittances served as a reminder of the failure of the domestic economy to provide sufficient employment for Filipinos. Unemployment rate in the Philippines stood at 7.6 percent in July.
source
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
What Marian, Dingdong did in Singapore Monday
Yes, it’s true: Sweethearts Marian Rivera and Dingdong Dantes were in Singapore end of last month not for a “tryst” but for a cause — to help raise donations for the victims of Typhoons Ondoy and Pepeng during a “dinner for a cause” at 7107 Flavours restaurant in Marina Square. They sang a duet and signed some of the auctioned items and capped the night by having their pictures taken with auction donors and winners.
Organized by the Philippine Embassy in Singapore headed by Ambassador Minda Cruz, the event raised some S$2,670 which was turned over to the GMA Kapuso Foundation and the Philippine National Red Cross.
The next day, Marian and Dingdong graced the Singapore party-for-a-cause, also organized by the Philippine Embassy, where they met OFWs. Then, they were interviewed by Singtel Mio TV which will air their TV starrer Dyesebel in 2010. The fantasy-romance-adventure started airing in Malaysia on Nov. 9.
On the side, they also boosted the morale of StarStruck hopefuls during the audition (the first of a series conducted also in some parts of the US) at the 7107 Flavours restaurant. Dingdong served as a panelist and co-star of the aspirants in the audition’s “drama” portion.
-Ricky Lo
Monday, November 16, 2009
What OFWs need to do
WHILE ON a recent trip to Japan, I heard a story about an OFW driver who nearly wasted away his earnings. He worked in Japan for close to 30 years, and at one point was earning an equivalent of P400,000 a month with overtime pay. He had a wife and child back home in the Philippines and was able to send his child to school. However, he was always out drinking at bars in expensive Tokyo while having several relationships with other women. “Puro good time,” they say.
Well the guy wasn’t able to hold on to his job due to his drinking problem. His employer asked him to resign, and he was given an equivalent of P2 million as separation pay.
His Filipino friends could only shake their heads in disbelief at how he wasted away the opportunity to have a well-paying job, and how he was not able to save any money to make his life better. Last they heard, he was back home, bought himself a tricycle which he drives for a living, and is staying with his parents since he could not afford to buy a house of his own.
Filipinos who leave the country to work overseas do so to earn more money in order to help support their families back home. However, not every OFW gets to lay out a stable financial future.
The problem, says Raul D. Dimayuga, senior vice-president and head of the global remittance division of the Bank of the Philippine Islands, is “initially a lack of awareness of what to do. For many of [OFWs], it is the first time that they are able to receive a larger amount of money than what they used to and if they are not properly advised, they would tend to use the funds for consumption.”
This is why BPI has embarked on providing a financial literacy program to its clients, especially OFWs and their beneficiaries. It has conducted the BPInoy Learning Series caravans in Iloilo, Cavite, Dumaguete, Davao, and most recently, in Cebu, and Cagayan de Oro, among others. The series seeks to show that financial control is possible even away from home. By using interactive modules, participants are taught how to save, invest and make use of available technology to do banking transactions. BPI services and products designed specifically for the global Filipino are also introduced, such as the BPInoy Remittance, BPInoy Savings Account, BPInoy Save-up (build up savings account with free life insurance), BPInoy loan products, and Credit Card.
Dimayuga says these are the basics that an OFW must have to be on the road to financial stability:
1. An account for himself separate from that of his beneficiary. “This way he is able to segregate his savings from his transactional account, i.e., funds needed by his beneficiary for day-to-day expenses.”
2. A plan for himself in terms of how much to save and set aside as budget for the family expenses which he agrees on with his beneficiary. “This way his plans are aligned with that of his family and the road to financial stability becomes a family affair. Ideally, he should be saving between 10 to 20 percent of his monthly income.”
3. An investment plan.
“Overseas Filipinos contribute substantially to our country’s growing economy. As a bank, we want to provide financial education to empower our global Filipinos to fulfill their dreams that fueled their decision to go abroad,” adds Teresita B. Tan, head of overseas banking and channel services group of BPI.
SOURCE
3,000 Filipinos in jail overseas—DFA
A JAIL in Egypt. AFP
MANILA, Philippines—Some 3,000 Filipinos are in jail in different countries around the world, according to the Department of Foreign Affairs.
About 70 percent of the detainees have been facing immigration-related charges and would be "deported after serving their brief sentences,” said DFA spokesman Ed Malaya on Tuesday.
“The rest are in custody for committing common crimes, including theft and drug trafficking,” Malaya also said.
In the Middle East alone, 62 overseas Filipino workers are detained on drug-related charges. Of that number, 43, mostly women, are in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
But Migrante-Middle East, an alliance of OFWs, doubted the integrity of the number and said there could be more than 3,000 Filipinos in jail abroad.
John Leonard Monterona, Migrante-Middle East regional coordinator, also said 70 percent of the 3,000 cases are actually cases of OFWs abused or maltreated by their employers. He said these are usually women domestic helpers who run away from their employers.
“The DFA failed to include the rising numbers of OFWs temporarily seeking refuge at the embassy-run Filipino Workers Resource Centers (FWRCs), Bahay Kalingas, and safe houses maintained by the regional offices of Philippine Overseas Labor Offices and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (Polo-Owwa),” he added.
Personnel of Philippine embassies and consulates abroad “conduct monthly jail visits to look after the welfare of Filipinos in jail,” the DFA said. “Approval of jail visitation in some countries, however, depends on the host government,” according to Malaya.
The country's diplomatic missions abroad “also maintain workers resource centers in countries where there are large concentration of Filipinos in cooperation with the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration.”
In Saudi Arabia, the Department of Labor and Employment maintains four Philippine Overseas Labor Offices. They are located in Riyadh, Jeddah, Al Khobar and Buraida. Contrary to some published reports, both DFA and DoLE “regularly report (to Congress) the inventory of overseas Filipinos,” Malaya pointed out.
On Monday, the non-government Blas Ople Center and Training Institute asked the foreign office to “conduct an inventory of OFWs in jail and set more frequent visits to monitor their situation and ensure their protection.”
The Pasay City-based center made the call as it also cited the case of an OFW who “has been jailed in Saudi Arabia on a drug-related case without a court ruling.”
“Jason Pineda, a 36-year-old OFW, wrote to the center to seek legal assistance after being jailed for one year and nine months on a drug-related charge without a sentence on his case. He has appeared before the court four times without a lawyer because he does not have the money to pay for one,” said the center.
According to the Philippine embassy in Riyadh, Pineda was “detained at the Dammam jail in March 2008 for allegedly receiving 21.2 grams of methamphetamine (or shabu) and selling them to his fellow OFWs.”
Pineda “allegedly confessed to the commission of the crime,” said the mission, quoting Saudi authorities.
“His case was endorsed by the General Prosecutor to the Grand Court of Dammam. The presiding judge said the case is still under the court's study and review. Mr. Pineda remains in detention since under Saudi laws, bail is not granted to persons involved in drug-related cases,” the embassy reported to the home office.
In a related development, the DFA's Migrant Workers Affairs office is making arrangements for the repatriation of Jose Jonathan Bigas, also imprisoned for a drug-related offense in Saudi Arabia.
“Mr. Bigas finished serving his term in Aug. 2008, but due to administrative procedures involving the Saudi court and the Governor's Office, he remains in jail,” the DFA said.
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