Opposition says reasons for frequent visits ‘flimsy’
Malaya
WHY the frequent trips to Dubai?
Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay yesterday said Dubai should be one of the last countries in President Arroyo’s Middle East travels if her aim, as Malacañang claims, is to secure jobs for Filipinos.
“Recruitment agencies are saying that there are no jobs available in Dubai, which has been one of the hardest hit by the financial crisis. But why insist on flying to Dubai at every opportunity?” said Binay, president of the United Opposition (UNO).
San Juan Mayor JV Ejercito, chairman of UNO-National Capital Region, said Malacañang should come clean on reports of Arroyo’s “personal side trips” to attend to her personal finances.
Press Secretary Cerge Remonde dismissed the reports.
“Baseless and malicious accusations like that do not deserve to be dignified with comment. You should have seen how the President worked so hard to secure jobs for Filipinos there,” he said.
Arroyo flew Saturday to Dubai from Thailand where protests prompted the cancellation of the Asean summit that Arroyo was to attend.
Last January, Arroyo also made a stopover in Dubai from Davos, Switzerland, on the way to an unscheduled side trip to Washington.
A month earlier, she checked on the conditions of the Filipinos working in Dubai after her visit to Qatar.
Arroyo arrived early yesterday from Abu Dhabi to where she proceeded after announcing some 200,000 job opportunities for Filipinos during a jobs fair in Dubai Sunday.
Ejercito said reports that Arroyo’s side trips to Dubai, the financial center of the United Arab Emirates, involves family finances are “credible” in the light of “lies” being made by Palace officials to hide the circumstances of the trips.
“The fact that Malacañang officials are trying to muddle the true dates when Arroyo last visited Dubai show that there is more here than meets the eye,” he said.
A Palace release said Arroyo was last in Dubai on January 27 to 28 last year when she was there on January 31 this year.
Ejercito said the reports are “true to form to the First Family’s modus operandi of taking the loot they amassed out of the country to avoid prying eyes.”
The reports noted Arroyo has been frequenting Dubai especially since the financial crisis in the United States hit hard Lehman Brothers and Merryl Lynch, said to be her family’s favorite investment managers.
The frequent trips to Dubai were noticed also after a chartered plane bringing Arroyo and her delegation to Peru via San Francisco in November last year had to turn back because presidential spouse Mike Arroyo had diarrhea.
Mr. Arroyo allegedly had to be made to disembark from the plane because he would reportedly be invited for questioning by US authorities about his accounts with Lehman Brothers.
Binay said the Palace claims of new jobs do not coincide with the sentiments of the recruitment industry which he said foresees fewer job openings in traditional Middle East markets.
“There is no rhyme or reason for the trips to Dubai if the only purpose is to look for jobs. Unless she presents a valid and logical explanation, these Dubai visits are a waste of taxpayers’ money,” he said.
He also said while there may be job openings in some Middle East markets, there are no guarantees that these jobs will be reserved only for Filipinos.
“Filipinos will have to compete with other nationalities for these jobs, and even the recruitment industry is saying that the government needs to make our OFWs more competitive by providing them with new skills to meet new demands,” he said.
Binay said the Palace should be more cautious in “raising false hopes” of new job openings in the Middle East.
“With the economic crisis, more and more people are pinning their hopes on overseas employment as a way out of poverty. As a result, they may easily fall prey to illegal recruiters, and even illegal practices of some agencies,” he said.
Arroyo arrived at 2:35 a.m. yesterday from Abu Dhabi, bringing with her the commitment of the UAE government to support the peace efforts between the government and the Muslim rebels in Mindanao, Remonde said.
Remonde said Abu Dhabi King Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, assured Arroyo that the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, the investment arm of the UAE government, is “seriously studying” Philippine investment proposals submitted earlier by Trade Secretary Peter Favila.
Khalifa also gave the assurance his country would continue to hire Filipinos, Remonde said.
Remonde said the President’s trip both to the UAE and Thailand were fruitful, as shown by the more than 200,000 job openings secured for Filipinos in the Gulf and North African region.
He said the job openings in Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kuwait, Algeria, Libya and Bahrain were secured from 16 employers during the jobs summit in Dubai. He said this is in addition to the commitment of a Kuwaiti firm to proceed with its planned investment in the Philippines soon.
“This is a very healthy sign that despite losses in some areas, specifically Taiwan, we are opening new job markets abroad. And precisely this is the objective of the mission of the President. She precisely went to the Middle East in order to ensure that there will be new job openings for overseas Filipino workers, and this is still part of her job generation program,” he said. – Jocelyn Montemayor
what lures gloria to Dubai?…the opportunity to make more money for herself and her family…mukhang sa eroplano na siya nakatira at nagtratrabajo…thre will come a day that may mangyayari sa mga ginagawa niya at matigil din ang corruption…someday..soon…
Rose,
Napanood ko sa TV Patrol na mayroong about 130 bus driver na napeke ng recruiter sa Dubai na nagsisiksikan na parang sardinas sa tinitirhan nila at kapos na sa pagkain.Ano kaya ang gagawin ng gobyerno natin sa kanila? Hayaan na lang ba sila sa ganoong situastyon? Nakakawa naman at umutang pa sila ng pera,sigurado ako na nakautang ang mga iyun dahil may prenda o collateral.
Iyan ba ang ipinagmamalaki ng gobyerno na mahigit 30,000 ang umaalis na OFW kada araw? Bakit hindi alam ng gobyerno natin na peke pala ang trabahong iniaalok sa kanila? Ano ang ginagawa ng Foriegn Affairs sa Dubai.
Global crisis ngayon and I don’t think maraming trabaho sa ibang bansa dahil kailangan din ng trabaho ang mga citizen nila.
Ano ang gagawin ng gov’t ni Gloria? wala.. anong pakialam niya? wala..that is how insensitive she is..and she calls herself the president? linuluko niya ang kapwa niyang Filipino…ang pangluluko sa kapwang Filipino ng mga recruiter seems to be a normal modus operandi sa atin..when I first heard that some people could do this, I was shocked..but it dawned on me that this is what is meant by dog eats dog.. and we call ourselves Christians? catholics? what an irony indeed!
Ang ibinabayad ng mga OFW sa POEA bago sila makaalis ay umaabot ng BILYONES kada taon. Anong klaseng proteksyon mayroon para maiwasan ang pekeng recruiter? Malamang sa wala. Anong suporta para sa mga napeke? Malamang sa wala. Maraming tanong pero ang sagot, ganoon din, malamang sa wala. Puro KABIG lang ang nasa isip nila.
At ngayon naman, para tayong ginagag* na sasabihing mayroon 220K na trabaho na nakuha nila sa Dubai. Istilo nila masyado ng bulok. Dapat noon pa ay nadispatsa na itong mga bulok na ito.
Someone called me up to check out:
http://www.goodbyegloria.com
Sana bukas magising ako na wala na si Gloria…at tunay ng “bye bye birdie”! And I will rejoice and be glad in it..sana..sana..sana..tomorrow is another day…it is just a day away…Tomorrow…tomorrow…just a day away….
Ellen,
Could be too that Gloria, the moral bansot, is bringing back the financial goodies to the Philippines, where she can hide them and spend them without prying eyes.
She belongs to that legion of kleptomaniac leaders who dispatch their loots left right and center when they suspect they are being cornered.
Malicious daw sabi noong bobong sipsip, pero ang suspetsa ko diyan naghahanap ng bagong paglalagyan ng mga ninanakaw nilang pera si Gloria Dorobo. Just watch the ads on CNN re investments in Dubai and you know why she has been frequenting Dubai. Isa pa naghahanap ng financier ang ungas no doubt for her campaign next year. Ganyan ang ginawa niya prior to election 2004.
Madalas ang punta sa Japan, etc. noon for the needed dough for her election campaign—bayad para doon sa mandaraya para sa kaniya, etc. Niloko pa nga ang mga OFW na nag-abuloy doon sa fundraising niya named “Eskuwela ni Gloria.” Kunyari for construction of schools, hindi naman pala. Pati iyong mga binabayarang OWWA fund ng mga OFW kinurakot pa!
Utouto naman kasi sila. Nagpapaloko pa sa magnanakaw na kunyari hinahanapan sila ng trabaho sa ibang bansa, pero wala naman.
Kawawang bansa!
Tarantada talaga si Gloria Dorobo. Noong 2001, anunsiyo agad ang Labor Secretary ni Gloria na may 40,000 jobs para sa mga pilipino sa Japan gayong may request na nga ang Japan noon pang panahon ni Ramos na bawasan na ang pagpapadala ng mga Japayuki sa Japan. Buti pa nga si Erap sa totoo lang naki-cooperate, at nagbawas ng mga pinapadalang potential putatsing dito.
Nang umupo si Gloria Bugaw, binale-wala ang naging usapan na ng gobyerno ng Japan at Pilipinas noong panahon ni Erap. Buti na lang napasa ang bagong Immigration Law ng Japan na nag-ban ng mga Japayuki. O di pahiya ang kumag. Ngayon naman panay ang anunsiyo ng trabaho daw sa Dubai etc. kahit na tinatanggihan na nga ang pagtanggap ng mga migrant workers sa ibang bansa di lang mula sa Pilipinas dahil global economic crisis at kawalan ng trabaho sa buong mundo.
Tapos iyong sinungaling, parang lasing palagi na nagyayabang pa ng improved economy daw ng Pilipinas na umaasa lang sa mga remittances ng mga pilipinong biktima ng human trafficking industry ng kanilang bansa.
Susmaryosep! Wala na bang katapusan?
Anna asks, “Could be too that Gloria, the moral bansot, is bringing back the financial goodies to the Philippines, where she can hide them and spend them without prying eyes.”
Anna, I’m sure she keeps a lot her illgotten wealth here to buy up everything here. But I imagine that she would be covering all bases so she also has to stash her loot abroad just in case things would turn ugly her and she and her family would have to leave just like what happened to Marcos. Also to a number of tyrants like Doc Duvalier. Thailand’s Thaksin is another example.
I imagine they would not want to suffer the fate of Mussolini ang Ceausescu.
I read Manuel Buencamino’s “same clues, different conclusion” reaction to my column on why Gloria Arroyo frequents Dubai.
That was interesting. Very perceptive, as usual.
But I’d like to stress that all that I did in that column was put together information I have gathered.
Ellen,
I think Gloria’s family should leave the country once she steps down from power. I have a feeling that they will suffer the same fate as Mussolini and Ceusescu. Filipinos are so tired ofher but are just helpless since she is protected by her corrupt generals. But once she is out, she better find another country. Can’t wait to spit on her face!
If you connect the puzzles, you come up with the conclusion how evil the bitch is. Andres, we really hope the Arroyo family would suffer the same fate of those criminal leaders. But given the values and mentality of the Filipinos one of which is too forgiving, I doubt it.
Why allow the Arroyos to leave the Philippines when the evil bitch is removed from office?
They should be sent to Muntinlupa, not to the USA, etc. and make them legally responsible for the crimes they have committed against the Philippines and their people.
Bakit aasahan pa ang mga kano na parusahan sila e kakampi nga nila iyong ambassadress ng US sa Pilipinas ngayon. Hindi ba magawa ng mga pilipino ang parusahan sila? Ang bobo naman!
At least, Ellen, Thaksin preferred to return to Thailand and face his tormentors.
In the Philippines, they stash money in the USA, where “Filipino criminal leaders” have found refuge, just in case. Hopefully, the US government will stop granting those creeps free haven in the guise of some political asylum and put them money launderers to prison where they belong.
Buti pa nga ang mga Koreano. Nagagawa nilang ipakulong ang mga corrupt na lider nila even after they have stepped down like what is about to happen to former president Roh Moo-hyun who has admitted accepting some bribe that he used for building his son a house in the USA. Kailan kaya mangyayari iyan sa Pilipinas?
Hindi ba naiinsulto ang mga pilipino na pinapaasa pa sa mga kano ang pagpapa-prosecute ng mga kriminal na pilipinong pinapabayaan nilang makatakas sa America?
In fact, I was very critical of the lawsuits filed in the USA against Marcos for crimes he was supposed to have committed against his countrymen in his own country as I could not imagine a Japanese leader for instance running or being transported to the USA and being tried in a US court for crimes committed in Japan. The normal thing to do in fact is send back home criminals to take legal responsibility for their crimes in their own country’s court.
Parang sinabi nila doon sa mga kano na gago kasi sila kaya di nila kayang i-prosecute ang mga criminal leaders nila gaya ni Gloria Pandak at asawa niyang garapal. Susmaryosep!
I would really like to see them prosecuted here. From what I heard, the Arroyos are already looking at Portugal as their country of choice for their haven after 2010. This is because we don’t have extradition agreement with Portugal plus they are spanish speaking. Diba si Evil Bitch at Mike Arroyo jabla espanyol? Haha!
Wag natin patakasin ang mag-anak na nagsamantala sa bayan.
BE: I agree with you…we, Filipinos are very forgiving and maawain…it is an usual trait…kaya I would not be surprised na even if you hang putot upside down mayroon pa rin magsusubo sa kanya ng pagkain at maawa dahil gutom siya..forgetting that a lot of people are hungry because she failed, is failing to be true to her mandate…oops hindi pala siya binoto..kaya hindi niya mandate ang being the President…we are a Christian nation…a catholic nation but is putot a Christian? is she a catholic as a catholic should be? Your Grace, Arch. Lagdameo, what sayest thou?
Obama was criticized for saying that US is not a Christian nation…but he has a point…we, christians believe in Christ’s divinity..Many believe in God, but they do not accept that Christ is God..the Jewish, the Muslims, believe in God but to them Christ is not the Messiah, to the Muslims in particular, Jesus is only a prophet like Mohammed is..but we all believe in God, who gave us the Ten Commandments to follow…I am sure the Ten Commandments were taught in Assumption…at ganoon din sa Ateneo…kaya lang baka may date si Miguel at si Gloria at absent sa klase noon kaya hindi nila naalaala…
Rose, how do you define Christian? Christian comes from the word “Christ” which means Christ’s followers. If one is His follower, then he follows and obeys His words. I beg to disagree that only those who believe in the divinity of Christ are considered Christians. The Jehovahas and Iglesia Ni Cristo do believe they’re Christians but don’t accept Christ as God. Try discussing the topic with INC and it would be difficult to defeat them in a debate. In fact, they argue based on the bible that those who believe in Christ’s deity are not Christians. It was only long after the death of Christ and His apostles that Christ was declared God. Same argument with Trinity that can never be found in the Bible. Trinity was invented by a certain Tertullian. The Bible warned that there would come a day when people would preach another Jesus and the words of God would be changed. Do you believe in Apostasy?
I raised the above argument not because I share the same belief; but to inform you about the controversial topic of Christ’s deity. Muslims also believe in only one God and consider Christ as Man and Prophet.
Rose: I would not be surprised na even if you hang putot upside down mayroon pa rin magsusubo sa kanya ng pagkain at maawa dahil gutom siya…
Ssshhhh. Ako yun. Pakakainin ko ng double dead na manok na may H5N1 bird flu na ibinabad sa bromide, hindi asukal, saka isinawsaw sa peanut butter sauce na may salmonella, bago binarbecue. Ang panulak ay ang paborito niyang cognac na may halong formaline at lead. pagkatapos niyang kumain ay saka siya pagsasampalin at tatadyakan sa sikmura ni cocoy para isuka niya yung kinain niya paagos sa mukha.
Rose: Obama was criticized for saying that US is not a Christian nation…but he has a point…
*****
Tama ka, Rose. Obama has a point. In fact, when we first arrived in the USA, I was surprised to find that majority of people there in fact do not go to church on Sundays or any other day. Napupuno ang mga simbahan ng mga katoliko for instance by the Mexicans and Filipinos.
Between going to church and going to a ball game on Sunday, mas marami ang pumupunta sa ball game. I bet you marami sa kanila hindi binyagan.
Christianities in US are not like other nations which only on SUNDAYS,for catholics,there are been other days of week, the people show there faith and believes,I rather see a few attender of a congression with true to heart,than a churh will full of PRETENDERS,trying to fool ourcreator.Attending mass or bible class are not the only way showing christianity,there are lot things to be considers to be “CHRISTIAN”…
“What lures Arroyo in Dubai?” ….. e di DATUNG … ano pa?
Duabai and Glueria have one thing in common. They are both fake. May fake island sa Dubai, baka may gusto ni glue na magpagawa ng para sa kanya lamang.