MANILA, 25 April 2003 - Qualified people from the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) should be chosen as ambassadors and labor attach?s in the Middle East and other countries with large concentrations of Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs), Senate Majority Leader Loren Legarda proposed yesterday.
Legarda said this should have been learned from "the successful track record of ambassadors, labor attach?s and other diplomatic officials who have been from the DOLE in the past. This shows that it pays to appoint individuals with knowledge of labor laws and experience of labor problems for diplomatic assignments in these foreign posts," she said.
She pointed out that such a practice was undertaken during the administrations of Presidents Corazon Aquino and Fidel V. Ramos.
One of these diplomats is Undersecretary Jose Brillantes, now in charge of overseas workers concerns in the Department of Foreign Affairs. A career officer, Brillantes was acting secretary of the DOLE before he was appointed ambassador to Malaysia.
"We must take good care of our human resources, especially those who leave their homes to work abroad..." Legarda said.
