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Pinoy Abroad

OFWs from Jordan lodge complaints vs welfare officer


At least five distressed overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) recently repatriated from Jordan have lodged a complaint against a female Philippine welfare officer who they said was indifferent to their plight. The five filed sworn affidavits against welfare officer Carmelita Mag-uyon at the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration, according to Blas F. Ople Center head Susan Ople. “The formal complaints were received by Atty. Lyn Perez at the 4th floor of the OWWA Building. [On Friday] the same set of affidavits will be received by the Office of the Labor Secretary at the Department of Labor and Employment," Ople said on her blog. Ople said at least two more OFWs will travel all the way from Nueva Ecija to Manila to execute their own affidavits against Mag-uyon. She said the affidavits will be transmitted to Mag-uyon so that she can also reply to charges. “OWWA has its own complaints committee that would look into both sides of the story after which a recommendation shall be forwarded to OWWA administrator Carmelita Dimzon for her consideration," she said. One of the OFWs, G. Quibedo, accused Mag-uyon of attempting a bargain with recruitment firm owner she identified as Mr. Ihab. Quibedo claimed Mag-uyon “offered" to bring Ihab more girls if he shouldered half of Quibedo’s plane fare home. “Please help this girl [Quibedo], and I will give you more girls who are willing to go back work," Quibedo recalled Mag-uyon telling Ihab. Another OFW, J. Mortel, said that when she sought Mag-uyon’s help to return to the Philippines, “she instead told me that I cannot go home unless I pay three thousand dollars to my employer representing the cost advanced by my agency from my employer." Mortel, a runaway OFW, said Mag-uyon even told her that since she ran away from her employer, “I cannot return home unless my police records are cleared. To do this, she brought me to the immigration office and left me there." She said immigration officers brought her to the police station where she was confronted by her employer. “Because I refused to continue to work for my employer the police physically abused me and dragged me to my employer’s vehicle," she said. N. Guilamilil, an OFW with a medical condition, said that on June 7 this year, she went to the Philippine Embassy to seek help. She said she was brought to the basement because her illness was contagious. But when she requested Mag-uyon for another medical examination, Mag-uyon shouted at her, “Paano ka nga magpa-medical, wala ka ngang passport?" She also said that before her return to the Philippines last July 26, she approached Mag-uyon several times. Each time, Mag-uyon allegedly shouted at her, “Ikaw, hindi ka makapaghintay, yung iba nga matagal na dito, ikaw three months pa lang," and “Hindi puwede," when she requested for another medical examination. The fourth OFW, L. Wadia, said Mag-uyon gave her an option to stay in Jordan or to go home to the Philippines. But when she opted to go home, Mag-uyon “countered that I cannot go home unless I have five hundred dollars to pay for my plane fare." “Since I cannot pay her the amount, she repeatedly asked me on several occasions whether I already had the money for my fare. But since I do not have any money she was left with no other option but to allow me to leave because the ticket was already paid for by the Department of Foreign Affairs for the repatriation of OFWs," she added. The fifth OFW, R. Aragon, said that last June 4, she sought refuge at the Filipino Workers’ Resource Center at the Philippine Embassy in Ammam, Jordan because of alleged maltreatment by her employer. But she said Mag-uyon “refused to render any assistance but instead told me to return to my employer as she feels that that is what is best under the circumstances." “Despite my protestations due to the trauma of the physical injury that I sustained from my employer, welfare officer Mag-uyon tried to facilitate my return to my employer to the point of acting as a go-between for my agency and family in order to make me change my mind in my decision to no longer return to my employer," she said. Last June, she said Mag-uyon asked her if she had $5,000 to pay her employer for the cost of her deployment “because I can only go home once I paid said amount." — JE, GMA News