JEDDAH, 16 September 2006 — SMPII, the Filipino group in Riyadh that had been linked to an alleged scam, has denied allegations of wrongdoing and is seeking to “reconcile” with a community leader its members had threatened, according to the Philippine Embassy.

Consul General Nestor N. Padalhin, chargé d’affaires of the embassy, said leaders of the group sought a meeting with him last Sunday to explain what they are doing and to intervene in their “quarrel with Alexander Asuncion.”

Asuncion was the subject of threats and harassment by callers claiming to be SMPII members when he warned in his column in Pinoy Xtra, the Filipino language supplement of Arab News, against an apparent scam targeting Filipinos.

SMPII stands for Sangguniang Masang Pilipino International (SMPII) whose leader goes by the name Maj. Elpidio Tanaliga Jr., who carries the title “commander in chief.”

Ambassador Padalhin said the group admitted offering to help their members secure gun licenses with the Philippine National Police (PNP) so that they can own guns when they go home. And they admitted collecting membership fees, citing that others organizations do that to cover their expenses.

“But they denied conducting military trainings for Filipino workers in Riyadh and promising members that they would be entitled to privileges when they go home,” Padalhin narrated in a phone interview with Arab News on Wednesday. “They also informed the embassy that they have suspended their activities.”

He said the group showed documents supposedly attesting that they were not using the PNP logo, as earlier reported in Arab News, even as they reiterated that they were accredited by the PNP’s Police Community Relations Group (PCRG) and Internal Affairs Service.

Padalhin said the group assured the embassy that they meant well and that their reason for being is to “help fellow Filipinos around the globe, support the needs of the unfortunate OFWs, and assist in maintaining peace and order.”

One of the documents reportedly shown by the SMPII leaders was a certificate of recognition by the embassy during the time of Ambassador Bahnarim A. Guinomla.

The other documents showed that the SMPII did refer cases of distressed Filipinos to the embassy and that “they also wrote thank you letters” to the embassy for acting on their referrals.

At that point, Padalhin said, he told them that a certificate of recognition or an accreditation is not a license to do anything illegal. “I reminded that that we are guests here (in the Kingdom) and we are obliged to follow the rules of the host country,” he said.

Padalhin bristled at suggestions by some members of the Filipino community that the embassy was not doing anything to openly denounce the alleged SMPII scam before more OFWs become victims.

“It’s not true that I’m being complacent about this SMPII issue. As a matter of fact, I have already made a report to Manila and the home office (Department of Foreign Affairs) had already replied,” Padalhin said.

In a letter to Arab News, he also said, “...As soon as the Embassy received the complaints from OFWs, it immediately made consultations with the Office of Intelligence and Security Services of the DFA. Consultation with the Department is not passing the buck but rather the Embassy being a government entity cannot take independent action especially on sensitive issues involving its nationals.”

“...the Philippine Embassy is not afraid to perform its mandate; to assume otherwise is presumptuous,” the letter added.

In e-mail exchanges, other community members also challenged the embassy to show its authority by confiscating the IDs and other paraphernalia bearing the PNP seal or logo that the issued by SMPII issued to its recruits.

Some wondered why the envoy readily believed the SMPII leaders when they showed him certificates without the PNP logo and claimed that they have stopped their activities. Padalhin said the embassy would confiscate the IDs once it gets an authority from the PNP or Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) in Manila to do so.

“The IDs were not issued by the embassy and the PNP has admitted that the group is accredited with its units. So we have to seek authority from them,” he explained, citing interdepartmental courtesy.

As for the advisory being sought by other OFWs, he said that would come once the embassy gets a clearance from the DFA. He said the home office has replied to his report to say that the DFA Intelligence office has requested the DILG and PNP to verify the status of SMPII.

Meanwhile, Alex Asuncion said if the SMPII leaders want reconciliation, they should apologize to the people they have allegedly misled with their promises.

“Kung meron man silang mga kinolekta bukod sa membership fee sa mga na-recruit nila, dapat lang nilang ibalik ang mga ito sapagkat isang lantarang pagsasamantala ‘yan (They ought to return whatever amount they have collected from their recruits because that’s plain opportunism,” he said.

Asuncion explained that what he was only replying in his column to a query from a letter writer seeking guidance about the alleged scam.

The threats against Asuncion triggered a backlash from his colleagues in the V-Team, a group of volunteers in the Kingdom who are helping distressed Filipino workers, and others who were alarmed by the alleged scam.