President Duterte Asks OFWs in Kuwait to Leave

Due to the mix reaction of different people regarding President Duterte and the Department of Labor and Employment’s decision and released Administrative Order regarding the ban with sending Filipinos in Kuwait, the president shared his reaction.

During his speech, the president apologized to the OFWs in Kuwait, but at the same time, advised them to go home.

According to the president, once the OFWs leave the country, the people in Kuwait will also have a hard time adjusting.

And I‘m sorry, the Filipinos there, you can all go home. If you leave, they will also be having a hell of a time adjusting to that.

More Cases of Rape?

President Duterte also mentioned about the rising number of rape victims in the Middle East. With more than 250,000 OFWs in Kuwait, he said that one more incident of rape, he is going to stop and ban the employment of OFWs in the country.

One more incident about a woman, a Filipina being raped there, I’m going to stop, I’m going to ban.

He also asked the government officials in Kuwait to treat Filipinos as human beings with dignity. According to him, Kuwait is helping the Philippines, but the assistance ends up with misery, rape, and Filipinos committing suicide.

Can I just ask you now to treat my countrymen as human beings with dignity? I don’t want to fight with you. We need your help. You are helping us, but if the assistance ends up with misery, rape, and my countrymen committing suicide they might as well leave Kuwait. We are poor, we may need your help, but we will not do work at the expense of the dignity of the Filipino.

Lost of OFWs in Kuwait

With more than 250,000 OFWs in Kuwait, most of them are domestic helpers, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, and Qatar will surely have a hard time replacing the Filipino workers.

Remittances sent by OFWs amount to more than $2 billion a month, making domestic demand as one of the world’s fastest-growing economies.

After the release of the Administrative Order, Kuwait expressed surprise and was in touch with the Philippines to try and resolve the issue. However, even the Labor Secretary, Silvestre Bello III rejected the plea.

Along with the ban, more than 250,000 OFWs will lose jobs too. What do you think the government should do as well regarding the OFWs who will lose jobs in the process?