Fate of ‘sex-for-flight’ official known this week – DOLE

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) will come out with a decision within this week on the administrative complaint against one of three officials accused by three distressed overseas workers of compelling them to have sex in exchange for repatriation, an official said yesterday.

DOLE Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz said in an interview that she is just “validating certain jurisprudence on the penalty” that will be imposed on former Jordan labor attaché Mario Antonio, but her “decision on the case is already being finalized.”

Antonio was charged with grave misconduct, based on the recommendation of a special fact-finding committee and the penalty ranges from reprimand, suspension to dismissal from public service, Baldoz said.

She said the decision on Kuwait labor attaché Adam Musa, charged with gross negligence, will come out soon while the decision on Riyadh assistant labor attaché Mario Villafuerte, who faces a charge of simple negligence, will be issued much later.

“Concerning the case against Musa, we are just checking the report from the National Bureau of Investigation to see if there are (pieces of) evidence that we can integrate,” Baldoz said.

She earlier referred the sexual harassment complaint against Villafuerte to the DOLE’s committee on decorum and investigation for preliminary investigation, based on the findings of the special fact-finding committee.

Baldoz said DOLE will work closely with the House committee on overseas Affairs in the investigation into alleged sex-for-flight activities involving labor officials.

DOLE has already implemented various reforms to prevent sex-for-flight schemes from happening in labor offices abroad, Baldoz said.