‘Build, build, build’ program not solution to OFW woes, solon tells Bello

A lawmaker has criticized Labor Secretary Silvestro Bello III’s claim that the government’s Build, Build, Build (BBB) program would eventually generate jobs for repatriated overseas Filipino workers (OFWs).

Gabriela Women’s Party (GWP) Rep. Emmi de Jesus dismissed on Wednesday such assertion of Bello as a far-fetched solution to the problems affecting OFWs.

“Malayo ang hugot nito. Hindi solusyon ang BBB program ng administrasyong Duterte sa problema ng ating mga repatriated OFWs,” De Jesus noted during the hearing of the House committee on overseas workers’ affairs.

“We find this response by the Duterte regime unacceptable. This is an attempt to glorify the BBB program’s supposed job generating capacity when the reality is that it will only create temporary jobs even if there are many construction projects lined up. In 2-5 years, wala na ang mga trabahong ito,” she pointed out.

The lawmaker explained that BBB jobs are “project-based, low-paying jobs which will not solve the woes of repatriated OFWs.”

“Ang kailangan ng mga kababayan natin ay disente at istableng trabaho sa loob ng bansa na magtitiyak ng nakabubuhay na sahod. What we need is a strategic blueprint for local decent jobs through national industrialization and genuine land reform,” De Jesus said.

During the same hearing, ABS party-list Rep. Eugene De Vera asked Bello if exporting labor has become a policy of President Rodrigo Duterte’s administration.

“Actually your honor, the final objective of our President is to recall or repatriate all our workers abroad, because we know the social implications of parents leaving their family just to look for jobs,” Bello said.

“But the reality is we do not have jobs available for all yet,” he added.

The Labor department chief said this was one of the reasons why the government has embarked in the Build, Build, Build program, which is designed to modernize the country’s infrastructure backbone by rolling out 75 flagship projects worth $36 billion in investments.

Bello said this program would eventually generate two million jobs a year, or around 10 million jobs by the end of Duterte’s term in 2022.                          /kga