41 rescued from ‘illegal recruiters’in GenSan

KORONADAL CITY, Philippines - – At least 41 people, mostly housewives, were rescued from three alleged illegal recruiters who reportedly promised them jobs in the Middle East without paying anything, the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) said yesterday.

The alleged illegal recruiters, identified as Rosale Balagon, Felicitas Matulado and Imelda Tanez, are now in the custody of the CIDG-General Santos City and set to face human trafficking charges. 

CIDG investigator Douglas Castillon said the 41 recruits were about to board a plane bound for Manila at the General Santos City airport when CIDG agents intercepted them last Friday afternoon. 

Castillon said they launched the operation when they found out that the three suspects had no “authority to recruit.” 

Castillon said the suspects convinced their recruits that their employment agency was legal by showing documents and telling them that the agency would shoulder all their expenses for their overseas deployment.

But Nur Juanday, General Santos City public employment service officer, said to ensure legality, all transactions should pass through any PESO offices and the Department of Labor and Employment. 

Juanday warned jobseekers not to be lured by supposed representatives of manpower agencies seeking recruits in coffee shops or shopping malls.