Despicable men

Last week, Silvio Berlusconi, Italy’s former prime minister who was involved in a sex scandal, was sentenced to seven years in prison and banned from politics for life.

An Italian lawmaker, Alessandro Di Battista said, “He must go to jail. It is outrageous that he is a senator that can make laws. Until he goes to jail, the country is not free.” Another Italian governor said, “Berlusconi should abandon public life.”

Politics in Italy is almost like politics in the Philippines. It is like a circus of crazy clowns jumping, turning, tossing and prancing around just to get what they want. The only difference is that in Italy there is still some “honor” left because they try so much to hang on to it.  In the Philippines, we let go of the “honor” and instead create a culture that brings about the decent of man.

The news that just came out on the sexual harassment and abuses allegedly committed by Ambassador Shulan Primavera, acting labor attaché to Jordan Mario Antonio (of the DFA in Syria), assistant labor attaché in Riyadh Antonio Villafuerte with other Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO) personnel and DOLE officials in Kuwait on our OFWs is an example of the decent of our government officials. How callous can they be?

According to Rep. Walden Bello our OFW refugees have been recruited for prostitution in Jordan, Kuwait, and Syria. For a while I thought the DFA was trying to put the news under the wraps but thankfully the Blas Ople Policy Center requested that DOLE and the Department of Foreign Affairs allow NGOs to sit in the investigative panel. Let’s pray that the government probers sent to these countries on a mission will file proper administrative and criminal charges against the labor officials accused of sexually molesting distressed overseas Filipino workers.

I, myself have had first hand experiences (although not sexual) with the way Philippine embassy officials in other countries treat Filipinos.  Talk about diplomacy their main function. Nada! Many of them are Juan Tamad’s, imbeciles who are not worthy of representing our country in a foreign land. My apologies to my Filipino ambassador friends but I’m sure you know what I’m talking about. There are many embassy personnel who were placed by senators and congressmen or even cabinet members overseas who think they are “untouchables”.  Sanamagan!

It’s about time we give justice to our countrymen. PNoy better clean up! He should not let this opportunity slip away.  He will be the only President crowned for putting these criminals to jail.

Section 3, Article IX (B) of the 1987 Constitution, Section 1 and Section 12 (19), Subtitle A, Title I of Book V of the Administrative Code of 1987 (EO 292) and Section 4 (B), Republic Act No. 6713, otherwise known as the “Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees,” empower the Civil Service Commission, as the central personnel agency of the government, to adopt positive measures for the observance of substantive and procedural administrative standards, including standards for the personal conduct of government officials and employees, in order to promote morale, efficiency, integrity, responsiveness and progressiveness in the entire government bureaucracy.

Section 4 of Republic Act No. 6713 provides norms of personal conduct for public officials and employees to observe in the performance of official duties, and specifically directs that they shall act without discrimination against anyone, and shall at all times respect the rights of others and refrain from doing acts contrary to law, good morals, good customs, public policy, public order, public safety and public interest.The Act further states that sexual harassment violates the dignity of workers and their right to humane, just and safe work environment, defeats and impairs morale and efficiency in the workplace, and violates the merit and fitness principle in the civil service.

The Civil Service Commission has promulgated rules and regulations defining the administrative offense of sexual harassment and prescribed the standard procedure for the administrative investigation and resolution of sexual harassment cases in the public sector.

Section 5 of Rule IV – Forms of Sexual Harassment states that the following are illustrative forms of sexual harassment: a) Physical – malicious touching, overt sexual advances, gestures with lewd insinuation; b) Verbal – such as but not limited to, requests or demands for sexual favors, and lurid remarks; c) Use of objects, pictures or graphics, letters or writing notes with sexual underpinnings; and d) Other forms analogous to the forgoing.

Section 6 of Rule V – Persons Liable for Sexual harassment, states that any government official or employee, regardless of sex, is liable for sexual harassment when he/she: a) directly participates in the execution of any act of sexual harassment as defined by these rules; b) induces or directs another or others to commit sexual harassment as defined by these rules; c) cooperates in the commission of sexual harassment by another through an act without which the sexual harassment would not have been accomplished; d) cooperates in the commission of sexual harassment by another through previous or simultaneous acts.

I figured we must review our rights as citizens.  We should learn to have the courage to speak up and be heard.  If we succumb to silence all the time – nothing will happen to us.

Yes, at the end of the day, it is really up to us to put pressure on government to let erring officials resign from office. They do not deserve to work for public office. These scumbags should be punished according to the law. They should not be given special treatment at all. The law is the law and it must prevail all the time. We actually need stronger law enforcement agencies around to get things done.

We have 7.8 million OFWs around the world today. Many of them are in the Middle East and the United States. A significant number can be found in European and Asian countries that include London, Milan, Singapore, Vancouver and Hongkong.

Let us not forget that OFWs do not really want to leave the Philippines. They are only forced to leave due to circumstances they face in life. It is the duty of our government to always keep us safe. It is the duty of our government to protect us.  It is the duty of our government to run after those criminals who exploit and abuse us.

Our OFWs have actually put their lives at risk. They have sacrificed being away from their loved ones and growing children. And so while they are far away, it is the duty of the embassy to take care of them and to protect them – not to harm them. I hope the DFA realizes that they need some overhauling to do in their department. They also need a lot of professional training which includes ‘Diplomacy 101”. What a shame! Susmariosep!

Never, never and never again shall it be that this beautiful land will again experience the oppression of one by another. Nelson Mandela