CAPITOL NEWS

OFW Congress Draws 1,500 participants. Vice Governor Jose Ferdinand Z. Calimlim, Jr. and Liga ng mga Barangay president and Board Member Amado “Pogi” I. Espino III (center) flash the Number One sign together with over 1,500 Pangasinense overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and Overseas Filipinos (OFs) with their families. (Photo by Meinard Sadim)

Lingayen- – – “We want you to stay and together, we will bring this province into further development. Let us remain united as we take one giant leap in realizing our goal to provide better income opportunities for all Pangasinense overseas workers.”

This was disclosed by Vice Governor Jose Ferdinand Z. Calimlim, Jr. who represented Gov. Amado T. Espino, Jr. during the Pangasinan OFW Congress and Induction of Pangasinan Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) and Overseas Filipinos (OFs) Family Credit Cooperative Officers attended by over 1,500 OF/Ws and their families on February 25 at the Narciso Ramos Sports Sports and Civic Center (NRSCC) gymnasium, here.

In stressing this, Calimlim said the provincial government under the stewardship of Gov. Espino has taken another bold step to unite and solidify the Pangasinense overseas workers and their families into one strong team.

Various innovative programs and projects, he said, were launched by the Espino administration to achieve the vision and mission of the provincial government for all Pangasinenses.

Earlier, the provincial government has launched a two-pronged program to provide security and livelihood to overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and their families.

The program involves working with a federation of OFW groups for the implementation of a community-based, anti-illegal recruitment and livelihood project dubbed “Bantay-Barangay, Tulong Hanapbuhay.”

The project is a strategic, comprehensive and innovative anti-illegal recruitment, human trafficking and poverty alleviation program, geared at training OFWs and their families to protect their communities against illegal recruiters and human traffickers.

Meanwhile, Liga ng mga Barangay president and Board Member Amado “Pogi” I. Espino III, who served as the inducting officer, paid tribute to all the province’s overseas workers whom he dubbed as “heroes of modern times.”

“Your sacrifices speak well of how much you love your family. You leave your family here to take care of other families in a country away from home. It is only fitting for the provincial government to offer this day as a tribute to your heroic deeds,” he said as he added that the present administration has endeavored to work harder and serve not only the overseas workers but their families, as well.

In his previous statements, Gov. Espino said OFWs have been a great contributor in the province economic development.

He then pledged to support OFW family associations affiliated with the federation and registered with the Labor department.

“I am here to help you. All you have to do is to keep in touch with PESO through its OFW Desk,” Gov. Espino said earlier.

According to PESO chief Alex F. Ferrer, Pangasinan was cited as the country’s top five province with the most overseas Filipino workers and the top producer in the region with more than 175,000 registered OFWs including migrants.

In addition, Ferrer said the province is intensifying its manpower and skills development by going back to basics through agri-based and tourism projects, which he said, will be the main focus of the newly-established cooperative.

The cooperative is envisioned to be the biggest in the province in the years to come, Ferrer added further stating the cooperative has a capital of more than P1 million authorized shares with a P120,000 paid up capital already in place coming from the dues of each member.

As for the province’s intervention on rescued OFWs from Middle East, Ferrer said some 49 workers were assisted to date. (Ruby R. Bernardino with reports from Hanson Wapaemi Walter)

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