Vice President Jejomar Binay, with former trade and industry secretary Peter Favila (left) and Cesar Sarino (right), partakes of a delectable lunch in Fort Bonifacio. Binay is celebrating his 69th birthday on Friday. RUEL PEREZ/RADYO INQUIRER
MANILA, Philippines — Vice-President Jejomar Binay appealed once again to Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) to go through the process when they go abroad to make sure they could be helped by the government, said a Radyo Inquirer 990AM exclusive interview Friday.
Binay, who was then celebrating his 69th birthday in Fort Bonifacio, Taguig, had just come back from the Middle East on official business.
He had helped a thousand OFWs who were then living in the Hajj Terminal in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia to return to the Philippines.
“It came to a point where we talked to Etihad [Airways] who agreed to accommodate them,” he said.
“Whenever I go abroad, I find ways to help some to get back home,” he added.
Binay, as the Presidential Adviser on OFW Concerns, cited the problem of OFWs in Syria where 90 percent were undocumented.
He said that OFWs would leave the country as tourists.
“They would go to countries that don’t require visas, such as Kuala Lumpur, Hong Kong, or Bangkok,” he said. “And from there they would then go to the Middle East.”
He recalled an incident a year ago when an OFW, who was then leaving as a tourist, disguised herself as a nun and was caught by immigration officers because she was wearing red shoes.
“We are always appealing to those who intend to go to other countries to go through the process,” Binay said. “A large part of problems they experience is culture shock,” he added.
Binay annually celebrates his birthday with a boodle fight for soldiers and other guests.
A boodle fight is a big meal usually on banana leaves and shared by troops who eat with their bare hands.