OFW Party-list Rep. Marissa "Del Mar" Magsino (Facebook)




A pro-overseas Filipino worker (OFW) solon asked on Thursday, July 13 the Department of Migrant Workers (DWM) and the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) to finetune the OFW Pass. In particular, OFW Party-list Rep. Marissa “Del Mar” Magsino urged the DMW and DICT to look into the reported issues of the OFW Pass such as difficulty in logging in, repeated system glitches, and errors in field entries. “While we appreciate the efforts made thus far, we have to conduct a thorough review of the application in light of initial comments received," Magsino said. A project of the DMW, the OFW Pass aims to streamline the application process for the Overseas Employment Certificate (OECs) of Filipino migrant workers. “I am happy that DMW is responding to the clamor of our OFWs to streamline and digitize the OEC process. Previously, DMW informed us that some mandatory requirements have been removed and, now, the digital platform, OFW Pass, is in its final stages," the lady solon said. Magsino said the current version of the OFW Pass application has been met with frustrations from users. "Comments online voice concerns and disappointment by OFWs who feel let down by the challenging user interface of the application," she said. "While we recognize the importance of the OEC in verifying the legal status of an OFW and as as a crucial tool for protection against illegal recruitment and human smuggling, our OFWs simply request for a well-organized, clear, and straightforward process where they can obtain their OEC," Magsino said. This, she said, was a simple and reasonable plea from OFWs who contribute $36.14 billion in remittances or 8.9 percent of the country's gross domestic product (GDP). "The final review and tweaking of DMW through DICT’s help will ensure that the digital application will become more user-friendly, will provide smoother transaction, and will align with the expectations of our OFWs. We are, after all, doing this innovation for our OFWs’ benefit so we have to consider their initial feedback," said Magsino.