Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles told a Senate committee on Monday, December 7, 2020 that the creation of a Department of Overseas Filipinos (DOFil) is a true manifestation of the government’s desire to protect the interest and welfare of millions of Filipinos working abroad.
“This is a ‘rightsizing’ solution that aims to concretely address OFW-specific issues. It’s high time that we institutionalize this solution at the highest level through the creation of a dedicated executive department,” the Malacanang official said.
Nograles attended the hearing of the Senate Committee on Labor, Employment and Human Resources Development virtually via WebEx to boost support for the proposed measure creating the DOFil.
The Cab Sec explained that the Duterte administration wanted to fulfill its promise to OFWs and their families to create a Department specifically addressing issues, concerns, problems and solutions relating to Filipinos based abroad, the numbers of which exceed ten million.
“The proposal is timely and urgent. We plan to integrate the functions separately exercised by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO), Department of Labor and Employment’s (DOLE) International Labor Affairs Bureau and National Reintegration Center for OFWs, Department of Social Welfare and Development’s (DSWD) International Social Services Office, Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) and Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA).”
Based on the proposal, the DOFil will be headed by a Secretary, with four (4) Undersecretaries and a yet to be finalized number of Assistant Secretaries working under the Department chief.
“Not all of these offices will need new budget allocations because there’s already a budget for the Secretary of the Commission on Filipinos Overseas as well as for Undersecretary and Bureau Directors. There are also plantilla items in absorbed agencies,” Nograles clarified.
The proposed DOFil will likewise be temporarily housed in the building currently occupied by the CFO, or in the alternative, the budget for rental being spent by the Commission shall be used to pay for another space for the new Department.
DOFil Regional Offices can be established in existing OWWA or DFA-Office of Migrant Workers Affairs desks all over the country.
Nograles stressed that the Covid-19 pandemic provides an opportune moment to examine the bureaucracy and the level of performance of existing governmental offices in addressing OFW concerns, additionally highlighting that “the Philippines has committed itself to abide by the 23 objectives of the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (GCM).”
“Our OFWs are our modern day heroes. It’s long overdue that we give them the fullest governmental treatment they deserve through an integration of separate but complementing functions currently performed by various offices into one specialized Department that caters to their concerns.”
