PEACE-MAKER

We are saddened by the killing of our kabalayen, Marjorette Garcia of San Jacinto, Pangasinan, who was an overseas Filipino worker in Saudi Arabia. 
It was a sad day not only for her loved ones but for the country. For Marjorette’s death is not just a personal tragedy, but a poignant reminder of the challenges and sacrifices that millions of our fellow Filipinos endure in pursuit of a better life for their families. 

Marjorette’s journey, marked by sacrifice and resilience, reflects the indomitable spirit that characterizes the Filipino workforce abroad.

It is thus fitting and proper that we pay tribute to our unsung modern-day hero, Marjorette, for the struggles and difficulties she and our other OFWs undergo for the sake of a brighter future, many times not for them but for their families, especially their children.  

The OFWs’ contribution to the country’s economy is enormous. According to the Philippine Statistics Authority, the total remittance of the OFWs during the period April to September 2022 reached ₱197.47 billion. The PSA also disclosed that the number of OFWs during the same period was estimated at 1.96 million, with Saudi Arabia as the leading destination. 

We urge the Department of Migrant Workers,the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration, and the Philippine Embassy in Riyadh, to continue working closely with the local authorities of Saudi Arabia in conducting a thorough investigation into the circumstances behind the death of Marjorette Garcia and, most importantly, for the perpetrator of the dastardly act to be brought to justice. 

We must also reflect on the need for sustained support and protection for our overseas Filipino workers not just in the Middle East but around the world.

Our kabalayen’s death reminded us of our halcyon years in the Middle East during the mid-1970s until the early 1980s. 

Reviewing our early years, we resided and held office for three years in London in the early 1980s, as we oversaw our projects operating the ports of Jeddah on the Red Sea and in Jubail on the Persian Gulf as pioneers and prime contractors, the first Philippine companies then in the Arab world, Landoil Resources Corporation, Global Electrification Corporation, and Philsinports (for Philippine-Singapore Ports Corporation), the latter at the time a joint venture with the Singapore Government’s Port Authority. We set up as well the electrification network in the vast Central Region around the capital city of Riyadh in Saudi Arabia where our companies deployed thousands of engineers and electricians.

We pioneered then in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Iraq and employed more than 50,000 of our countrymen, the first Filipinos in large numbers in the Middle East, many of whom have since returned home with great work experiences and substantial savings. They helped build middle-class homes in the countryside while contributing to the enrichment of the coffers of the Bangko Sentral with critical foreign exchange. 

Yes, we were pioneers at the time in the Arabian Peninsula, together with other Philippine companies, leading eventually to the presence of perhaps more than one million Filipinos today in the Arab world as engineers, doctors, nurses, electricians, port and farm workers, restauranteurs, musicians, employees in supermarkets and various offices.