Mga kababayang naija pinoys at pinays, isa na namang di maintindihang decision ng ating government officials.
Biruin nyo, Lebanon‘s “ILLEGALLY DEPLOYED OFWs” – meaning, undocumented workers- are allowed to come home without any fear of being banned from returning to their place of work.
And yet, Ms. Manalili, just like her predecessors, have the gumption to say that the ban to Nigeria will remain because the government still believe that the entire Nigeria is very risky. Manalili is saying security of workers is the major consideration of the government.
This is madness.
If security is a big issue, why can’t the philippine government impose a travel ban to the following places in the Philippines which Australia deems to be ‘dangerous’.
We, the Filipinos in Nigeria, are very disappointed by Ms. Manalili’s parroting of the previous statement made by DOLE Sec. Roque and DFA/OUMWA Usec. Conejos.
We cannot believe that Ms. Manalili would just say that Nigeria is a risky country when she has not even a first-hand knowledge about the situation in Nigeria, nor has she made any effort to get feedback from filipino association in Nigeria.
In other words, her pronouncement with regards to Nigeria ban is based on ‘blessed ignorance’ of what is the present situation in Nigeria. Knee-jerk decision making. That is their habit. Bad news for bad news, i think Middle east is consistently DEADLY to hapless HSWs. So why is the government not putting a ban on their deployment?
We wonder who are the people behind the lobby to have the Lebanon ban lifted. We would like to hire them
as Nigeria lobbyist also.
The risk in Lebanon is not only rooted on occassional war, but more on the Arab culture. How many Sri Lankans, Filipinos and Bangladeshis die in the hands of their Arab employers every year??
EVERY YEAR !
And yet Ms Manalili, like her bosses at DOLE and DFA, continue to insist that Nigeria is as dangerous as Somalia. Some people are not reading their news.
Ms. Manalili, we Filipinos in Nigeria, invite you to visit us here in West Africa. Maybe when you meet with us in Lagos, you will have a better understanding of why we Naija Pinoys make a lot of noise and effort to have this ban lifted. And then maybe you can give a correct report to your superiors that the ban is no longer necessary.
We hope you will have a merry christmas. Dahil kami sa Nigeria, nangigil sa galit at naiiyak sa lungkot sa pahirap na dinaranas namin dahil sa ban na to.
================
LOCAL NEWS: POEA says OFWs in Lebanon can spend Christmas in RP
By Mayen Jaymalin Updated November 24, 2008 03:47 PM |
Filipino domestic helpers employed in Lebanon can now look forward to spending a Christmas at home.
Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) chief Jennifer Manalili said the government would be allowing illegally deployed Filipino workers to return home for the holidays.
“The POEA will soon be coming out with a resolution that will allow our workers in Lebanon to spend Christmas here without fear of getting banned from returning to their jobs,” Manalili said in an interview.
Manalili noted that they have been getting numerous requests from overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in Lebanon, most of whom were deployed illegally, that they be allowed to spend the Christmas season in the Philippines.
“We are granting their request, but we must stress that only those who will come home for the holidays will be allowed to return to their jobs in Lebanon,” Manalili said.
“The possibility of allowing new hires in Lebanon is still under study, we still have to validate the job orders,” Manalili explained.
The government is also unlikely to lift the ban in Iraq, Nigeria and Afghanistan, saying security of workers is the major consideration of the government.
Posted by naija pinoy 
Filipinos in Nigeria 