Speaking at this year’s Bagong Bayani Awards conferment rites at Malacañang yesterday, Mrs. Arroyo said foreign exchange remittances of OFWs have "saved" the Philippine economy from collapsing.
"You are our true heroes," she told the assembled OFWs.
Mrs. Arroyo said a Cabinet report presented to her last Tuesday showed that the country’s economic performance for the first quarter of the year registered a 25 percent increase in the "net income factor" from abroad.
"A big chunk of that came from earnings of our OFWs in the first three months this year, our GNP grew 3.6 percent," the President said. "The dollars sent back home run up to billions of dollars and form a substantial portion of the country’s dollar reserves as well as substantial portion of our country’s growth rate."
Mrs. Arroyo said she wanted the awards rites held at Malacañang’s Heroes Hall to symbolize the government’s recognition of OFWs as among the country’s modern day heroes.
"In return for their good deeds, their vital contribution to our economy, and their personal sacrifices, the least we can do is to continuously find ways and means to help them better," she said.
However, Mrs. Arroyo said she was disappointed that Filipinos have to go abroad to look for high-paying jobs.
"We know that good high-paying jobs here were not available yet for many of our countrymen because our economy is still weak," she said. "And while we are doing our best to improve our economy, OFWs go on with their jobs abroad. But someday soon, our OFWs can work here in our country and still provide well their families with a more comfortable and decent life."
Mrs. Arroyo said she has ordered officials of the Departments of Labor and Employment, and Foreign Affairs to extend legal services to OFWs in distress.
At the ceremonies, Mrs. Arroyo handed out cash awards and plaques to 11 OFWs, and the Filipino crew of the Norwegian tanker, M/T Team Venus, headed by Capt. Romel Alcantara for their feat of rescuing 12 Ukrainian seamen whose ship sank in the Atlantic Ocean last Jan. 24.
Meanwhile, the militant group Migrante International called yesterday for the repeal of the Migrant Workers Act of 1995 and the immediate repatriation of OFWs who were "unjustly" jailed abroad.
In an official statement, Migrante said the Migrant Workers Act has been a "complete sellout" of OFWs in contrast to the government’s claim that it had protected them.
"Since its signing, successive policies and executive orders have been passed which force migrants to pay even higher fees/contributions to government agencies such as the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration and the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration," read the statement.
Migrante also denounced Mrs. Arroyo for continuing a labor export policy, which the statement said has heightened the "commodification" of OFWs.
"Migrante International vows to continue ... organizing and mobilizing overseas Filipino workers toward national freedom and genuine democracy–so that one day, we may have a society where Filipino families are no longer torn apart because of the need to survive," read the statement.
Migrante listed the "excessive" fees collected from OFWs as follows: NBI clearance, P100; passport/passport renewal, P550 to $100; POEA processing fee, from $300 upwards; Medicare, P900; seaman’s boook, P5,000; artist record book, P5,000; OWWA membership, $25; OWWA resolution 99-016, $25; and placement fees, from P75,000 upwards.