House OKs creation of TWG on Department of OFWs

MANILA, Philippines — A joint House panel on Wednesday agreed to create of a technical working group (TWG) that would tackle the proposals to create a new department that would look after the welfare of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs).

The House committees on government reorganization and on overseas workers affairs approved the motion to create a TWG to consolidate the 31 bills filed at the House of Representatives pushing for the creation of a Department of OFWs.

According to Batangas 5th District Rep. Mario Vittorio Mariño, the House government reorganization committee head, Albay 2nd District Rep. Joey Salceda and Kabayan party-list Rep. Ron Salo, who are both vice chairmen of the committee, will be among those who will lead the TWG.

Meanwhile, 1-PACMAN party-list Rep. Enrico Pineda, vice chairman of the House Committee on Overseas Workers Affairs, will also lead the TWG.

“The others who would want to attend, you are welcome, so that we can come up with a consolidated bill,” Mariño said during the joint panel hearing.

Several OFW groups also manifested their intention to participate in the TWG.

All government agencies concerned with overseas Filipinos — such as the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA), Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA), Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) among others — are likewise part of the TWG.

READ: House conducts first hearing for plan to create Department of OFWs

House Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano, who is also an author of one of the bills, said that leaders of the Senate, Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III, and Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea in a consultative meeting agreed to create a joint technical working group to “thresh out all issues” concerning the creation of a Department of OFWs.

According to him, House aims to pass the measure by November and have it signed by the President by December.

“We will propose that by the end of October,” Cayetano said in an earlier interview.

That, he said, will give them enough time to conduct at least two hearing in countries where there are a lot of OFWs. The hearing of the TWG should be over by the first week of November. So the bill will be on the floor for second reading and plenary debate by the second week of November.

“If we can follow this, we can finish this by December,” he added in Filipino.

READ: House eyes to pass bill creating dep’t for OFWs by November

In his 2019 State of the Nation Address (Sona), President Rodrigo Duterte urged the creation of a Department of OFWs.

READ: Duterte wants ‘Department of OFWs’ set up by December

READ: Highlights of Duterte’s 4th State of the Nation Address

/atm