OFWs pa-Saudi, puwede na uli

ni Mary Gutierrez Almirañez | May 29, 2021

Binawi ng Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) ang temporary suspension sa deployment ng mga overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) papuntang Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), batay kay DOLE Secretary Silvestre Bello III ngayong araw, May 29.

Aniya, "After receipt of the official communication from the Saudi government this morning which ensures us that the foreign employers and agencies will shoulder the costs of institutional quarantine and other COVID protocols upon arrival in the KSA, the temporary suspension of deployment to the Kingdom is hereby lifted.”

Inabisuhan na rin ni Bello ang Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) upang ipatupad ‘immediately’ ang pagbawi sa naunang desisyon, sapagkat naging malinaw na sa kanila na KSA employers ang magbabayad sa 10-day quarantine at iba pang quarantine protocol requirements ng mga OFWs na ide-deploy sa Saudi, at hindi ang mismong OFW.

Giit pa ni POEA Administrator Bernand Olalia, “Ipinaliwanag na po nila na hindi dapat kasama ang OFWs doon sa travel advisory kung saan may pananagutan na mag-institutional quarantine, at magbayad ng COVID-19 tests at insurance coverage.”

Matatandaan namang mahigit 400 Saudi-bound OFWs ang na-stranded sa Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) nitong Biyernes dahil sa deployment suspension.

"I understand that the suspension order drew confusion and irritation among our affected departing OFWs. Again, I apologize for the inconvenience and momentary anguish that it may have caused our dear OFWs. It was to the best interest of our OFWs that such decision had to be made," sabi pa ni Bello.

OFWs at tourism frontliners, prayoridad na rin sa bakuna

ni Mary Gutierrez Almirañez | May 28, 2021

Prayoridad na ring mabakunahan kontra COVID-19 ang mga empleyadong naka-assign sa isolation facilities at quarantine hotels o maituturing na tourism frontliners sa ilalim ng A1 priority group, batay sa Department of Tourism (DOT) ngayong araw, May 28.

Ayon kay DOT Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat, inaprubahan ng Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of the Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) ang rekomendasyon nila na itaas ang pagiging prayoridad ng mga nasabing empleyado dahil araw-araw nilang nakakasalamuha ang mga naka-quarantine na posibleng positive sa COVID-19.

Aniya, "It is high time that we protect our tourism frontliners knowing that they are risking their lives each time they show up in the designated quarantine and isolation hotels."

Dagdag niya, "This move shows the government's commitment to protect them. Not only will this decision help ensure the survival of the tourism industry, this will also hasten the country’s economic recovery.”

Maliban naman sa tourism frontliners ay prayoridad na rin sa bakuna ang mga paalis na Pinoy papuntang abroad para magtrabaho o ang mga outbound overseas Filipino workers (OFW).

"The IATF moved to Priority Group A1 the outbound overseas Filipino workers for deployment within the next four months from the intended date of vaccination," sabi pa ni Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque.

Sa ngayon ay tinatayang 2,507 tourism frontliners na ang nabakunahan kontra COVID-19. Samantala, umakyat na sa mahigit 4.7 million ang kabuuang bilang ng mga nabakunahan sa ‘Pinas.

Giit ni Department of Health (DOH) Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire, "We were able to vaccinate already almost 4.7 million individuals. We are averaging 100,000 jabs per day.”

DOE, BOC at BIR, joint forces vs mga ilegal at puslit na gasolina

ni Mary Gutierrez Almirañez | May 28, 2021

Dumalo sa virtual signing event ang Department of Energy (DOE), Bureau of Customs (BOC), at Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) upang lagdaan ang memorandum of agreement (MOA), kung saan napagkasunduan nila ang pagpapalitan ng impormasyon upang mapuksa ang mga naipupuslit na ilegal sa bansa, partikular na ang smuggled fuels sa pamamagitan ng Information Exchange and Reconciliation.

Sabi pa ni BOC Commissioner Rey Leonardo Guerrero, “Through this Memorandum of Agreement, the BOC looks forward to building a better, more transparent partnership with the DOE and the BIR, moving towards the common vision of curbing oil smuggling and ensuring proper assessment of taxes through regular information exchange.”

Giit naman ni DOE Secretary Alfonso Cusi, “Together, we must arrive at an aligned and comprehensive solution to this pervasive problem, which, I believe, begins with reconciling and consolidating the data and reports of the DOE, the BOC, and the BIR.”

Sa ngayon ay inaasahang magiging epektibo ang pagtutulungan ng tatlong departamento upang maaksiyunan ang mga naipupuslit na ilegal sa bansa.