DMW to assist Filipinos allegedly recruited to work as scammers abroad

The Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) on Tuesday said it would help address reports that Filipinos are being recruited to work as scammers abroad.

At a public briefing, DMW Undersecretary Hans Leo Cacdac said that DMW Secretary Susan “Toots” Ople directed that assistance be given to concerned overseas Filipino workers (OFWs).

“Pinag-utos po ni Secretary Toots, halimbawa, ang mag-provide ng airport, accommodation, legal, financial, psychosocial counseling assistance sa mga OFWs na tinutukoy sa speech ni Senator Risa [Hontiveros],” he said.

(Secretary Toots has ordered, for example, providing airport, accommodation, legal, financial, and psychosocial counseling assistance to the OFWs mentioned in Senator Risa’s speech.)

In her privilege speech on Monday, Hontiveros bared the case of 12 OFWs who were rescued from a Chinese syndicate based in Myanmar through the help of a non-government organization and the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA).
 
Citing the testimonies of the rescued OFWs, she said the 12 Filipinos were recruited as customer service representatives or data encoders and were supposed to work in Thailand.
 
But they were allegedly dragged by the Chinese mafia to Myanmar, where they will scam other people and use cryptocurrency as a front, according to Hontiveros.
 
Cacdac said the DMW has been coordinating with the DFA and other concerned government agencies to assist OFWs in such situations.

“Huwag po kayong mag-alala, rest assured, nakatutok po ang DMW sa kalagayan ng OFWs na tinutukoy ni Senator Hontiveros,” he said.

(Don’t worry; rest assured, the DMW is closely monitoring the situation of the OFWs that Senator Hontiveros was referring to.) — VBL, GMA Integrated News