AS the month-long Overseas Absentee Voting (OAV) kicks-off, Anakpawis Partylist Rep. Rafael V. Mariano encouraged Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) to vote wisely and choose candidates that uphold the interest and welfare of OFWs and their families.
“OFWs must choose national candidates that have clear platforms on providing employment for Filipinos. Among the major cause of labor migration and the exodus of Filipino workers is the perennial lack of livelihood and employment opportunities in the country,” Mariano said.
“OFWs must also choose candidates that can give solution to the lingering problem of rising prices of goods and services. Remittances sent by OFWs to their families here in the Philippines are hardly felt because of constant price hikes and increasing cost of living. Under Aquino, prices of oil products and rates of vital utilities like electricity and water continue to increase,” Mariano said.
“To create regular, decent-paying jobs in the country, the local economy must be strengthened, particularly industries that provide jobs to Filipinos. But instead of providing local employment to workers, the Aquino administration encouraged Filipinos to work abroad and intensified labor export policies that allowed the modern-day slavery of OFWs.”
“Despite the Aquino government’s ‘imagined economic development’ and boasting of the country’s so-called ‘rising tiger of Asia’ status, economic indicators show that local unemployment has worsened under the current administration. Local unemployment rate is at 7.1 % while underemployment is at a high 20.9%. Under Aquino, more than 4,400 workers scurry out of the country to work as skilled workers, laborers, trade and service sector workers abroad.”
“Majority of OFWs abroad are employed as plant and machine operators and assemblers, workers in trade and related industries, laborers and unskilled workers.”
“There are no significant industries in the country to give these workers long-term and decent-paying jobs. They are pushed to the path of labor migration,” Mariano said. “The Aquino government has no plans of genuinely developing the local manufacturing and agriculture sectors – the real backbone of domestic economic development.”
According to Comelec official data, there are 988,384 overseas voters for this year’s election. Automated polls will take place in the following countries with large concentration of overseas voters: Hong Kong (83,118); Singapore (50,063); Dubai (55,842); Jeddah (30,328); Kuwait (30,468); Riyadh (53,396); and Abu Dhabi (21,645)