PRESIDENTIAL Communications Operations Office (PCOO) Assistant Secretary Kristian Ablan should resign for peddling fake news and incompetence.

In Wednesday’s second pre-Sona forum, Mr. Ablan maliciously if not ineptly distorted my previous remarks at the first pre-Sona forum. Mr. Ablan’s misrepresentation in the subsequent forum, which I did not attend, then gave Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello the excuse to attack me – to malign my name and character.

The least Mr. Ablan can do is apologize for his irresponsible acts or better yet resign from his post.

In the first pre-Sona forum,I merely urged the Department of Labor and Employment (Dole) to draw up new strategies and programs to uplift the conditions of the 7,000 Filipinos leaving the country every day for jobs abroad, especially the 250,000 domestic workers departing annually.

The overseas Filipino worker (OFW) ID card that Bello claims as his No.1 achievement “is absolutely useless and does not even exist. Secretary Bello claims that the OFW ID card has great value as a substitute for the overseas employment certificate (OEC). But actually, it is just an ordinary ID card that no machine whatsoever can read. Pampakapal lang ng wallet ng OFW ‘yan.

Also, not all distressed and repatriated OFWs are getting financial assistance. Kokonti lang sa kanila ang nakatatanggap actually. Hindi lahat at wala pang kalahati ang nabibigyan ng financial aid.

The problem may be due to lack of Overseas Workers Welfare Administration funds. But it may also be due to having the wrong priorities, or the misuse of funds. This is why we are prodding the Dole to find new and meaningful ways to help our OFWs, particularly the domestic workers, and their families here.--Rep. Aniceto Bertiz III