KEANU AEBRAMH G. COSTALES
CITY OF SAN FERNANDO, Pampanga – The Pampanga Mayors’ League (PML) vowed to strengthen its partnership with the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) especially in its anti-illegal recruitment campaign at the grassroots level.
Minalin Mayor Edgardo Flores, concurrent PML president, guaranteed that they are in full support to POEA’s campaign with the guidance of Pampanga Governor Dennis ‘Delta’ Pineda and the mayors from various municipalities and cities.
Maria Teresa Delos Santos, representative from the Workers’ Education and Welfare Monitoring Division of POEA, said that the agency is looking forward to the support of the local government officials in eradicating illegal recruitment activities in their respective cities and municipalities.
“I assure that all the PML members, with no contradiction, will support the campaign to help our fellowmen who have been victimized by illegal recruiters,” Flores said.
He also mentioned that the mayors will enter into a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the POEA upon securing first the authority from their respective Sangguniang Bayan.
This was bared during the PML’s regular meeting on October 25, Friday, at the Executive House, Capitol compound here.
Anti-Illegal Recruitment Campaign in Pampanga
It could be recalled that Pampanga, under the administration of now Vice Governor Lilia ‘Nanay’ Pineda, was the first province to sign the MOU with POEA in 2012 together with the 19 municipalities and two cities.
The agency was able to educate barangay officials and academic institutions about the issue regarding illegal recruitment.
The campaign led to the decrease of illegal recruitment incidents in Pampanga on that same year, making the province the best partner of POEA, according to Delos Santos.
“Six years after, we are coming back to the province to request for the renewal of partnership in order to reinvigorate the campaign especially now that we have new leaders and executives in the local government units,” Delos Santos said.
