MANILA, 29 July 2006 — The Philippine ambassador to Beirut yesterday said he was sorry for complaining through media that the embassy did not have enough money for the repatriation of Filipino workers in Lebanon.
Manila officials made the apology of Ambassador Al Francis Bichara public without assuring him that he was off the hook for causing a ruckus that elicited charges that the government was not doing enough to rescue the mostly women Filipino workers in Lebanon.
Presidential Excutive Secretary Eduardo Ermita said no disciplinary action may be taken against the envoy for the moment but hinted that the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) could take action at the right time.
“While there is a crisis, we do not wish to disturb the work of officials on the ground,” Ermita said.
Ermita made sure the public knew about Bichara’s apology by reading aloud during a press conference at Malacañang the ambassador’s letter addressed to Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto Romulo.
“I was just trying to be candid and did not mean that the Philippine government had no money for the evacuation... I assure you, Mr. Secretary, that I will continue exerting my utmost efforts to ensure success of this evacuation,” he said, adding that his complaint was the result of a “miscommunication.”
Bichara said he was made by his staff believe the embassy had only $50,000 for evacuation and that they cannot not use the embassy’s working funds of about $ 200,000.
But DFA Undersecretary Esteban Conejos said Bichara was at the July 12 meeting of DFA officials, when the crisis in Lebanon began, during which a directive was issued authorizing the embassy in Beirut to use its $200,000 fund for the evacuation of workers wishing to flee Lebanon.
Conejos and other members of the government’s “crisis management team” on the Lebanon evacuations — Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) chief Marianito Roque, Labor Secretary Arturo Brion, and Philippine Overseas Employment Agency administrator Rosalina Baldoz — were at the press conference called by Ermita.
Bichara’s complaints over the alleged lack of funds prompted the Senate to announce an inquiry into the status of the 7.6-billion pesos overseas workers’ fund in the safekeeping of the OWWA. Roque said the fund is intact. Opposition Sen. Jose “Jinggoy” Estrada said he would grant Gordon’s request for an inquiry and questioned why President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo had only released 150 million pesos when the OWWA was supposed to have the funds.
'Fund Is Intact'
OWWA Administrator Marianito Roque said he was prepared to face the Senate inquiry and explained that the funds are intact and deposited with the Land Bank of the Philippines and Development Bank of the Philippines, both state-owned.
“It is intact in these two banks,” he said, adding that the OWWA board met with the two banks yesterday and a report has been submitted on the status of the fund.
Apart from the 7.6 billion pesos, Roque said the OWWA also has about 200 million pesos in savings with the Land Bank, which the agency is now using to fund present evacuation efforts.
Ermita said he had also been in discussion with the president on the issues, who confined at the St. Lukes Medical Center for flu.
He said the OWWA has signed up an investment management agreement entrusting the fund to the banks to manage and invest in government securities, both treasury bonds and treasury bills.
Earlier yesterday, Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye asked the opposition to stop its “muckraking and grandstanding” over the OWWA fund controversy.
Bunye said what was important right now was to bring back the Filipino workers and ensure the safety of those who choose to stay in Lebanon.
Reacting to a move by some senators to investigate claims that funds for the ongoing evacuation of Filipinos from Lebanon were inadequate, Bunye told reporters in a weekly forum at the Ambassador Hotel in Manila that “at this time, investigations would be counterproductive.” “The least we can afford is grandstanding and muckraking which will only get in the way of the evacuation efforts,” he said in a separate statement.
Bunye said the government wanted “zero casualty” and was prepared to take “all necessary steps” to keep Filipinos out of harm’s way.
“The president has clear standing orders to our Lebanon crisis team to mobilize all necessary resources possible to ensure the safety of our workers,” he said.
He said there would be enough time later to look into allegations of anomalies in the use of the OWWA fund.
Bunye said glitches in the release of funds were being ironed out even as the government was accelerating its evacuation, relief, and transport activities.
“We are not taking any chances and we are fully aware of the fluidity of the situation and the need to be always prepared,” Bunye said. (With a report by the Inquirer News Service)
