|
Tuesday, June 25, 2002
Cut costs, or no budget: Sto.Tomas warns Owwa
THE Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (Owwa) will not get its 2002 or its 2003 budgets approved until it starts streamlining its spending.
Labor Secretary Patricia Sto.Tomas admitted that until now she has yet to approve Owwa's budget proposal "because the Owwa refuses to reduce their spending."
"I have told them to reduce their spending down to 80 percent of what they collect and earn from the workers' money, but until now they refuse to do so. Now they don't a new budget to speak of," Sto.Tomas said.
Sto.Tomas said they would have to talk about the budget this coming Owwa Board meeting and her demand would remain for Soriano to keep their spending below 80 percent of the money collected from the overseas workers.
She said the Social Service System and the Government Service Insurance System only spent no more than five percent of their collection to administrative and other spending.
She said she would push on with the monetary management changes in order to give more money to workers' welfare.
She has, in fact, sent the results of the investigation conducted by her department on the alleged misspending inside the Owwa to the Presidential Anti-Graft Commission for possible cases to be filed against those found liable to the misspending.
Because of her unrelenting pursuit to tighten the belt at the Owwa, Sto.Tomas is suspecting that Soriano is behind moves to have her ousted from office.
Earlier pronouncements by both Sto.Tomas and Soriano said that they have patched up their misunderstanding, but only after the President publicly chided both officials for bickering in public.
Shortly after the President's speech during the Migrant Workers' Day news floated that Sto.Tomas could be replaced by Presidential adviser for one million job creation Cito Lorenzo reportedly because the Chief Executive was not pleased with the Saudi agreement she signed authorizing the lowering of salaries of unskilled workers.
Following that, militant labor groups led by the Kilusang Mayo Uno, closed ranks with the government union sector led by the Dole Employees union and the Confederation for the Unity, Recognition, and Advancement of Government Employees (Courage), to demand for Sto.Tomas' ouster.
But Sto.Tomas said this so-called movement against her is espoused by those directly affected by her strict monetary management of the Owwa.
She said the Presidents of Courage and Dole EU are all from the Owwa.
"The movement to oust me came only after I came out with the expose on how the money of overseas workers are misspent and because I wanted to change that, many are getting affected," Sto.Tomas said.
But she said she is not aware of any move in Malacañang to have her removed from office, but maintained that it's "the President's call."
Soriano denied having anything to do with the ouster movement against Sto.Tomas but did admit that until now they are yet to have an approved budget proposal. "We are willing to do what she wants because she is our Secretary," he said.
Soriano said they are operating on their old budget, which Sto.Tomas believe favors them more because their old budget is bigger than what she intends to approve. |
|
[return to top]
[home]
[network page]
|
LOCAL NEWS
BUSINESS
OPINION
SPORTS
LIFESTYLE
FEATURE
|
