800 siege evacuees to get overseas jobs

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines   â€“ Some 800 male evacuees displaced by the siege staged by the followers of Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) chairman Misuari will be hired for overseas employment, the local office of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) said yesterday.

Labor regional director Sisinio Cano said the hiring of the evacuees is on top of DOLE’s regular program and employment services for this year, which include the integrated livelihood, internship and emergency employment program.

Cano said the special project was created following a request from City Mayor Ma. Isabelle Climaco-Salazar to find employment for male evacuees.

He said Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz approved the program and ordered two labor attaches to arrange the deployment of the male evacuees.

“On top of this regular program and services of DOLE, we launched a special project to provide employment to those displaced persons in Zamboanga City,” Cano said.

The labor official said a memorandum of agreement was inked between the city government and the accredited recruitment agencies for the hiring of the evacuees.

He said the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) will help them ensure that only skilled evacuees would be deployed for employment.

Cano said the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration, the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration and the local government units will see to it that the 800 evacuees would not be victimized by illegal recruiters.