ON THE heels of the declaration made by President Rodrigo Duterte in his State of the Nation Address (SONA), the Blas F. Ople Policy Center on Monday urged the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking (IACAT) to quickly act versus illegal recruiters.
In a statement, Ople Center head Susan Ople said the IACAT "should not dilly dally" in its fight versus illegal recruiters and human traffickers.
“The President has declared war against human traffickers and illegal recruiters. Surely, those victimizing OFWs through illegal recruitment cannot sleep right now,” said Ople.
She said the country recently attaining the Tier 1 ranking under the US State Department’s Trafficking in Persons Report is not enough reason for the IACAT to rest on its laurels.
In his State of the Nation Address (SONA), Duterte has declared war versus human traffickers and illegal recruiters preying on OFWs.
In addition, he also formally asked Congress to pass a law that will consolidate and merge all agencies and offices having to do with OFWs into one department.
According to Ople, having a singular department in charge of OFW concerns is a welcome development for Filipinos, especially since it might include a one-stop shop for their requirements.
“The OFW sector is happy as he will be true to his campaign promise to create a separate department for our OFWs and a hi-tech one-stop shop to address their needs,” she said.
Having such an institution, Ople said, would ensure that they will not need to go through several agencies to complete their requirements or obtain assistance. (HDT/Sunnex)