Bong Go to Pinoys in HK: Faster services for OFWs

Former Special Assistant to the President (SAP) and aspiring senator Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go assured overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) that he would work to provide them with better and faster services.

“Makakaasa po kayo na mabibigyan ng agarang aksyon ang inyong mga hinaing,” Go declared.

The former SAP gave this message on Sunday while visiting OFWs and other overseas-based Filipinos in Hong Kong’s Deep Water Bay Public Beach and Central District.

Go was welcomed by about 2,500 OFWs, Philippine officials in Hong Kong, and other Filipinos residing in the area.

“Mahal namin ang aming kapwa Pilipino, mga OFWs, alam niyo 'yun. Kaya po kami naririto, minsan po, nakikipaghalubilo sa inyo, (ay para) marinig po ang inyong mga hinaing at mapasaya kayo kahit sandali,” Go said.

Bong Go mentioned that one of the ways to fast-track transactions of OFWs is by helping the Philippine government create a Department of OFWs, focused on attending to their OFW needs.

“Alam niyo po, mahal na mahal namin ni Pangulong Duterte ang mga kapatid nating OFWs. Unang-una, isusulong ko po 'yung Department of OFWs para po may (ahensya ng gobyerno na) nakatutok sa kanila,” Go told audience members.

Currently, OFWs process different transactions at the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), and Commission on Filipino Overseas (CFO) under the Office of the President (OP), to name a few.

Integrating multiple services in one agency will help OFWs save time and resources as the agency will cut across department boundaries and lessens red tape, he explained.

Bong Go also spoke about his intention of helping returning OFWs who plan to work in the Philippines for good.

Go shared his legislative agenda for the family members that OFWs left in the Philippines. He plans to help build more Malasakit Centers as well as provide senior citizens with better benefits.

The Malasakit Center, a program of the Duterte administration, is a onestop shop where DOH, DSWD, PCSO, PhilHealth, and other government satellite offices are put together in one area to ease the process for patients in need of fast medical and financial assistance.

Mayroon na po tayong 23 Malasakit Centers sa buong bansa at dadagdagan pa po natin ‘yan sa pagdaan ng panahon,” Go said.

A senatorial aspirant in the 2019 midterm elections, Go is offering a legislative agenda that includes programs for agriculture, housing, improved health service delivery, education, long-term sports development, localized peace talks, anti-drug and crime drive, anti-corruption drive, barangay welfare, department of OFWs, as well as senior citizen concerns.