MECO chief leaves for Taipei

MANILA, Philippines –  Manila Economic and Cultural Office (MECO) Chairman Amadeo Perez Jr. left for Taiwan yesterday morning with the hope of settling the dispute arising from the deportation of 14 Taiwanese fugitives to China last December for large-scale fraud.

Perez left on Philippine Airlines flight PR 896.

He was accompanied by MECO director Rosemarie Arenas and assistant corporate secretary Arthur Abiera Jr.

They are schedule to call on Timothy Chin Tien Yang of the Taiwanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

“We are going to appeal to reconsider the hiring ban of Filipino workers following the deportation of the 14 Taiwanese nationals,” Perez said.

Beijing-bound Vice President Jejomar Binay briefly met the delegation at the departure lounge before boarding their respective flights.

Asked on the chances of convincing the Taiwan government to recall the hiring ban, Perez said he “cannot say what will happen but we will try our best to calm down the ill feelings of Taiwan on the deportation issue.”

Perez said that their trip was different from the China travel of Vice President Binay, whose sole purpose is to convince the Chinese government to reduce the sentence of the three Filipinos who were meted the death penalty for drug-related cases.