PE ROME’s SECOND OUTREACH MISSION IN MALTA

By Veronica Ugates
Malta
November 25,2014



As usual the Fil-Com officers had extended their help hand in hand with the able supervision of  Mrs. Letty Siddorn, chair of Simbahang Pinoy  to the Philippine embassy staff from Rome who came on the 21^st and left on the  24^th of November  2014 for an outreach mission led by Vice Consul Margaret Malang. They were provided with ample facilities through the courtesy of the Millenium Chapel Parish Priest Fr. Hilary and , of course, our very own Fr. Aldrin Alvarado.

It was quite successful though there were some things that had been overlooked such as  no proper dissemination of what was to take place had been supplied.  Information was given  in the  meeting on the afternoon of the 21^st November that there will also be overseas voting registration as  posted in the fb page of the embassy. If it was posted there why was the information not extended to the communication sent to the people who were to do the assisting?  As a rule practically nobody among the members of the Filipino community in Malta bothers to read what has been posted in Rome. And to presume that it should have been read is quite an arrogant assumption. It is their responsibility not ours to monitor what is going on and to give us proper and adequate information. They are paid for it.  What we were interested in only were the consular services and the POLO-OWWA services. Period.

In fact finding someone to coordinate with was already a difficulty because unless you know someone to address to in PE Rome nobody bothers to answer your inquiries.  I finally have to address the consul general before I got any reply as though I was the one in need of help , not them. My main reason for aiding was not even because of them but because I wish to assist my compatriots in Malta and, of course, because I did not wish to present so much hassle to the Millenium Parish on whom we have necessarily imposed upon.

At the same time the Maltese employers who are of course elderly people,  who were subjected to the displeasure of the Labor Attache were quite distressed and formed a bad impression of the arrogance  that had been shown them. These people are the reason why Filipinos are here in Malta. They are our bread and butter and they deserve the civility that should be extended even if they are not heads of corporations. The Labor Attache, apparently, had been questioning why they can afford to pay the salaries of the carers or domestics when they are sometimes only earning less than a thousand. The reason for this is because the family members pitch in and in the case of a disabled person, the government of Malta extends assistance financially or provide housing and other amenities or have them housed in the facility of an NGO that have this purpose. Something that do not exist in the Philippines, and therefore incomprehensible to someone not in the know.  There are NO  beggars in Malta nor people living in the streets. They are all adequately housed and fed somewhere even if they have no family or nobody owns them.  Even stray cats and dogs are sufficiently quartered and fed.

The Filipinos serving them would surely go somewhere else if they are not well compensated for their services, would they not? The laws here in Malta unlike the Middle East where our government and the POEA keep on sending   people [ regardless of what is going on there]  is very favourable to  the workers. Nobody had been killed, raped, nor physically abused and if the work hours were exploited  it is simply because the contract  provided by the POEA cover long hours. Definitely  not the Maltese fault, though the employers may take advantage of it. But if you complain to the Labor Office they will try to help by  asking the employer to either pay overtime or to allow more off hours to the worker though they did say they cannot break an official  contract. And usually the employer would consent to  more off duty hours.

Certainly, the Labor Attache is only being admirably diligent  in her duties to  protect the innocent worker who has first hand knowledge of how her employer is treating her. But being there with your employer daily should most assuredly provide you with enough realization of whether you are being treated fairly or does it not? It does not need the expertise of the Labor Attache to ferret out that knowledge or should it? 

Just after the consular services a funny tale  had surfaced  that the Labor Attache had awarded 250 job orders for chamber maids/hotel servers  to someone. Could this be true? Is she then satisfied, perhaps,  that these 250 people will be suitably  employed here in Malta and not find themselves in Sicily or somewhere else which seems to be the new destination nowadays? Only time can tell. But had there been Filipinos who came to Malta and been sent to Sicily? As rumour goes,  there are.

The fact that PE ROME and POLO-OWWA are  extending  their services to us here in Malta is NOT a favour that they  are affording us. It is their job to supply these services as well as extend courtesy to the Maltese employers who are the people who provided the Filipinos with their livelihood and pay their salaries. In view of that, some consideration should have been returned in courtesy and good will to the employers and the Filipino workers who are keeping the Philippine economy buoyant and are in fact the very reason why there is a POLO-OWWA abroad.