By Leslie Ann Aquino
Labor groups slammed President Duterte for betraying the thousands of contractual workers when he vetoed the Security of Tenure (SOT) bill.
Labor groups Defend Job Philippines and Kilusang Mayo Uno (Facebook / MANILA BULLETIN)
"This move of Duterte is a clear betrayal to the thousands of contractual Filipino workers who have put their high hopes to the electoral campaign promise of Duterte that he will end all forms of contractualization in the country," said Christian Yamzon, executive director of Defend Job Philippines, in a statement.
"Duterte’s veto of the SOT Bill is an extreme display of insensitivity and insincerity to the Filipino labor force who have been suffering against the evils of contractualization for almost three decades now, since the enactment of the Republic Act 6715 or the Herrera Law," he added.
The group also said that the Palace’s statement on Thursday that it will be returning the consolidated enrolled Senate Bill # 1826 and House Bill 6908 to the Congress without Duterte’s signature “only exposed his true self of being an anti-labor and pro-capitalists president and that he is blatantly favoring not the workers demands but the appeal and interests of big businesses through the Employers Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP).”
The Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) said the flipflopping decision of Malacañang to veto the SOT bill spoke of the President's "treacherous" character who they said has long exposed himself as "anti-worker" and "pro-foreign capitalists."
"President Duterte has been taking the Filipino workers for a ride. The vetoing of the SoT bill is a complete turnaround from his bold campaign promise to stop the endo practice once he assumes the presidency," KMU chairperson Elmer Labog said.
"Given the pressure coming from no less than the American Chamber of Commerce, representing the interests of US-led multinational corporations operating in the country, in cahoots with the confederation of the richest domestic commercial enterprises, we do not expect President Duterte to drop his position to veto the bill or take a similar action in the coming days. Nevertheless, the workers are outraged with how shameless this government can be when it comes to kowtowing to foreign dictates," he added.
During last Monday's State of the Nation Address, Duterte did not mention the SOT bill, but disclosed in a subsequent press conference that he was still studying the measure and balancing the concerns of both employers and workers.
On Friday, Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo confirmed that the SOT bill was vetoed by the Chief Executive.
READ MORE: Duterte vetoes Security of Tenure bill