Saudi Embassy puts off ‘unified contract’ scheme

MANILA, Philippines — The Saudi Embassy has deferred implementation of the controversial “unified contract" scheme, which Philippines placement agencies and migrant workers’ group have opposed. Senate President Manny Villar announced the “good news" on Wednesday, saying Saudi Arabian Mohammed Ameen Wali informed him by phone of the embassy’s decision. “This is welcome news that will surely provide relief to our overseas workers. We express our thanks to Ambassador Mohammed Ameen Wali for taking prompt and favorable action on our plea," said Villar. Last July, Wali notified the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) and overseas employment industry that effective Sept. 1, 2008, the embassy will entertain requests for visas only to recruits of Philippine placement agencies who have tie-ups with a member of the Saudi National Recruitment Commission (Sanarcom). Villar said in a statement on Wednesday that he wrote Ambassador Wali on August 26 to express concern over the feared effect of Saudi Arabia’s “unified contract" policy. The statement said Villar made his request in consultation with Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto Romulo, Labor Secretary Marianito Roque, and POEA head Rosalinda Baldoz. In his letter, Villar cited the various concerns of Filipino workers regarding its implementation, said the statement. Philippine recruiters have raised fears that they and their recruits will pay additional fees if the scheme takes effect. They claim Sanarcom will only act as a "middle man" in the processing of visas for OFWs. “We see no beneficial result in entering into a contract with a third party like Sanarcom except to add to another layer into the recruitment process," said Ezekiel Alunen, former member of the POEA governing board, in a joint statement with a Philippine recruitment agency. Saudi Arabia employs more than one million skilled and unskilled Filipino workers making it the top destination for OFWs. - GMANews.TV