Senate president and presidentiable Manny Villar is in very serious trouble. His foreign affairs and OFW adviser, Ambassador Lauro Baja is being charged for alleged human trafficking, racketeering and forced labor by a fellow Filipino.
What now, Mr. Villar? Should we be concerned, since, you said in that television commercial of yours, that we need to report those who commit human trafficking and such crimes against our Overseas Filipino Workers (OFW)?
How will we do that now when the very person you made as your adviser is himself, deeply involved in such affairs? How will you now justify your OFW campaign?
How many Bajas do you have in your circle of influence, Mr. Senate President? I'm sure you checked each and every one's background. Are you sure that every adviser has been checked out? Do you have others involved in other rackets, like jueteng, drugs, and smuggling?
More than this though, if news about Ambassador Lauro Baja is true, that’s a big blot in the eye for the Philippine foreign service. And it seems that he's not the only one involved in this kind of racket.
A few months ago, another Filipino diplomat pleaded guilty for a similar offense, that of forced labor and racketeering.
What happened to our once prestigious foreign affairs? This department has been our source of pride in the past. Many idealistic individuals like me dreamt of someday working there. I did manage to work there as head of the economic diplomacy unit of the DFA think-tank. It was a brief stint. Though entry was very competitive, I decided to go back to media, my first love.
Unlike any other government agency, the DFA seems to be the most viable and the most reputable place for one to work. It has the least record for corruption, unlike the BIR and Customs.
With this report on Baja’s and other similar incidents involving our envoys, a thorough investigation should be undertaken. This is a very serious offense which merits a total overhaul, if not, a total re-examination of the list of individuals we allow to serve our fellow Filipinos living abroad.
Baja is a career diplomat who once served the UN Security Council. What has prompted him to do such a despicable thing? Was it low pay? Was it for his retirement or pension funds?
What is happening to our society that the least corrupt government agency has been turned into a place of slave traders?
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ReplyDeleteWhen I was in Saudi Arabia (2005) I heard from compatriots that there were Filipina women sheltered in the Embassy who run away from their abusive employers unable to fend for themselves since the Embassy could not provide for their needs are "raffled-off", they are given a chance to work to earn some money and sometimes they have to sell their bodies to other Filipinos or other nationalities. Imagine they went to the embassy for help only to be abused once again.