We are sure her story will resonate among the millions of Filipino OFWs who surely suffered the same harrowing experience and shabby treatment from the government offices and officials who were supposed to make things easier and convenient for the country’s so-called “modern-day heroes”.
Here is her letter:
“Dear Sir,
“It was not long ago when I first had my OFW experience. I went home for my 2011 Christmas break and stayed in the Philippines for 2 weeks. I did not go to POEA for the “exit clearance” so when I got to NAIA, my suffering began. I arrived early and lined up for hours to check-in for my 11:45 PM flight in January 2012. When my turn came, the airline ground crew informed me that I have to pay the travel tax first since I did not have my Overseas Exit Clearance (OEC)/E-receipt from POEA. When I got to the travel tax counter I was instructed to go to the POEA office outside to confirm if I needed to pay any taxes. I said, “Are you kidding me? I have to get in line for the luggage x-ray and airline check-in again, I only have an hour left?” I refused to go and insisted that I just pay the travel tax instead but they said it will be better if I went and so I did.”
“I was surprised to find out how the POEA/OWWA employees treat OFWs. They were not helpful and accommodating. They were actually rude. There was this old gay staff who was speaking in a very loud voice saying, “Ano ba yan! Yung mga 5 days lang dito sa Pilipinas ang pinapayagang kumuha ng exit clearance dito sa NAIA!’’ Ano ba naman kayo!” He said the same thing to me so I replied in the same tone that ‘’this is my first time!’’ He then changed his tone and handed me this form to complete and asked me to bring it to OWWA for checking and then bring it back to him. I completed the form, brought it to OWWA and that is where I learned it is mandatory to pay the OWWA membership fee of P1,200, Philhealth fees of P1,200 and the exit clearance of P100. I could not do anything. I was obliged to pay the fees so I can leave the country to work and send money back to the Philippines, for the government and public officials to keep and use. I returned to this rude gay staff afterwards to collect my OEC/E-receipt. I then rushed outside to do x-ray and then to the airline check-in counter but unfortunately, I missed my flight that night. This is the kind of assistance offered to OFWs by the government.
“After that unforgettable experience from my last vacation, I made sure I got an exit clearance ahead of time when I returned to the country for another vacation. So last month, I went to the POEA office around 10 a.m. (Tuesday) to again secure an “exit clearance.” Outside the main door of the building there was a lady seated on the side giving out “balik-manggagawa” forms. I asked which form I needed for the OEC. She just handed me several forms without explaining what they were for and instructed that I wait for my number to be called. It was like a market place inside. There were so many people and not many chairs for the waiting OFWs. I stood in a corner and completed the forms (Philhealth, Pag-Ibig, absentee voting and balik manggagawa). I went to the room where they were processing the OECs. The room was packed and disorganized. They were only serving “430A” that time and I was “428B.” 997 OFWs to go, I said to myself. There was a “priority” window and 15 other windows for the not-so-important people like us, but there were only seven (7) windows open serving the OFWs. How efficient, right?”
“It was a long wait. You could actually sense how tired, irate and impatient many OFWs were. There was a lot of complaining. I heard someone telling his wife over the cellphone to come to POEA to experience his suffering saying, ‘Akala mo ba nagpapasarap kami dito?!’’ Another OFW was saying it is easier to come home than to leave Manila. Others were asking how many times they needed to update their personal information (i.e. full name, address, birthday, parents’ name, profession, etc)?”
“While waiting for my turn, I paid my SSS and Pag-Ibig fees. At the OWWA window, after checking their system, I was told my OWWA membership had expired and that I needed to pay P2,600. ‘How can that be when I just paid my OWWA and Philhealth this January 2012?,’ I asked. The lady didn’t answer and just told me to wait for the evaluator and then go back to her.
“After a long 9-hour wait, my number was finally called at around 7 p.m. I submitted the ‘personal information sheet’ to POEA to be evaluated and then to OWWA. I was told to pay P2,600 so I presented all my receipts in January (P1,200 for Pag-Ibig, P3,360 for SSS and P1,200 for OWWA). I was asked to pay P1,300 instead (P1,200 for Philhealth and P100 for the OEC). Why is their system not updated when the whole point of going through these aggravation is for them to keep their records up-to-date? How come payments are not registered correctly? Are they really keeping all the information they collected from us? When I left POEA with my OEC/E-receipt in hand, there were still around 500 people waiting for their OECs.
“With all the hassle I went through, I thought that I was done with POEA. But on the day of my flight, the NAIA airline staff told me to go to POEA/OWWA to have my exit clearance verified. So I asked her why I had to have my exit clearance verified when I already went to POEA precisely not to be inconvenienced anymore when I leave. Wasn’t that the whole purpose of getting an exit clearance? She just replied it’s the ‘new policy.’
“I was so pissed off. I went out and lined up at OFW lounge again only to find out that the e-receipt only needed to be signed by the POEA staff at NAIA. I was so frustrated that I told him, ‘Why do you let us spend and waste one whole day in POEA office to get an ‘exit clearance’ and pay all those dues and then ask us to still come here just so you can sign it?! This is an e-receipt, computer-generated, released by your office, right?!! Why don’t you spare us this inconvenience, trouble and suffering?!’ The staff just said: It’s policy.”
“Then it was time for immigration/passport control. There was a line for OFWs so I went there thinking that it would be faster or easier. But no, the line wasn’t moving. OFWs were being interviewed and their papers checked again. That’s when I decided I’ve had enough so I took a chance and went to the regular travelers’ line. Luckily, it was just a plain passport/immigration check and I was able to fly out that day.
“I really feel sorry for my fellow OFWs who have to go through the same b***s*** every time they leave the country after their vacation. It saddens me to know that the government is adding distress and trouble to OFWs. All they do is suck and collect money from all of us. What do OFWs get as benefits from all these hassles? That we do not pay airport or travel tax when we leave? I would rather pay them than go through hell every time I leave my own country. I would rather be an unregistered OFW if this is how Filipino workers abroad are being treated. We do not just work for all of you; we also work for our families. So stop this b***s*** and stop making our lives miserable. You do not ease our pain. You do not help us. You are, in fact, a burden to all of us. I wish you realize that. Better yet, try to be an OFW and go through this entire b***s*** and tell us what you think.”
The nightmare which this unfortunate Filipina OFW went through only reflects the government’s cavalier attitude toward our labor expatriates. Despite pumping some US$23-billion into the Philippine economy last year, our OFWs have not been given the privileges commensurate to their contribution.
It’s also quite shocking to learn that with the billions of pesos in fees collected from our OFWs, the POEA and OWWA still don’t use modern technology like biometrics, database networking or the internet to make it faster and easier for our OFWs to get the needed clearances or to exit the country. And forcing OFWs to cough up hard-earned money for fees that have already been paid but are being charged anew because POEA and OWWA have been negligent in updating their records, is nothing but plain and simple extortion. Apparently, the Labor Department’s press releases about making things more convenient for OFWs are just that – press releases.
Is this how the Aquino administration treats its “bosses”?
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