Screengrab from www.pagasa.dost.gov.ph
MANILA, Philippines – Another weatherman has left government service for a job in the Middle East, according to the head of the union at the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration.
Ramon Agustin, president of the Philippine Weathermen Employees Association (PWEA), on Tuesday identified the Pagasa employee as Christopher Galang, a weather observer assigned to the agency’s Doppler radar station.
Galang “is leaving Pagasa to work in Qatar, joining the other three weathermen who left last week,” Agustins in a text message to reporters. He gave no other details and declined to comment further.
Agustin announced that forecasters Bernie de Leon and Ralph Ricahuerta, and engineer Ralph Soquila, had left the weather bureau to accept positions in the Qatar Bureau of Meteorology as airport forecasters and communication specialist, respectively.
The union leader said the three planned to leave Pagasa as early as last year but postponed their departure as “they were prevailed upon to stay hoping that there would be improved economic benefits in the agency as promised.”
Pagasa employees have not received their hazard pay for almost six months now, Agustin said in a statement.
“The giving of the other two benefits namely, the longevity pay and subsistence allowance would be given only until June this year because the Department of Budget and Management has not yet released the funds for the next semester from July to December,” he said.
Pagasa also lost its former administrator, Nathaniel Servando, to Qatar when he accepted a job there in June last year after going on leave for three months.
In July 2010, former weather division chief Nathaniel Cruz left the bureau for a job in Australia. He returned to the Philippines and became resident meteorologist for GMA-7 network.
Science Undersecretary Graciano Yumul, who was the concurrent head of Pagasa, also left government in March 2012 to join a private firm.
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