OFWs urged not to send remittances on Sept 19

MANILA, Philippines - Migrante International is calling on overseas Filipino workers to stage a different kind of protest on September 19. Migrante is asking all OFWs not to remit a single centavo back to the Philippines on September 19. The group said this is a symbolic protest, meant to show the government their anger towards the multi-billion peso pork barrel scam. "Nakikita namin na talagang its already an expression of, talagang dismayado na ang mga OFWs," Emman Villanueva of United Filipinos in Hong Kong said. Presidential deputy spokesman Abigail Valte said they leave it to OFWs to join the protest. "We leave it to the personal choices of the OFWs abroad. Kasi po hindi naman po din pamahalaan mismo 'yung tatamaan ngunit 'yung mga pamilya po nila," she said. Valte said the government will not be directly affected by the protest but the OFWs' families. The protest also calls on the government to re-channel the funds for the pork barrel into welfare and other programs that would directly benefit the public, such as assistance for distressed OFWs.