Ople Center urges GOCCs to help affected families

Ople Center urges GOCCs to help affected families; bats for one-stop shop on-site calamity loans assistance from GSIS, SSS, PhilHealth, Pag-Ibig and OWWA

Former labor undersecretary Susan Ople issued an appeal in behalf of workers’ and OFW families affected by typhoon “Ondoy” for onsite calamity loans processing and assistance by various social security agencies and the Overseas Workers’ Welfare Administration.

The founder of the Blas F. Ople Policy Center said that she has been receiving requests for relief items and any form of assistance from families of OFWs especially those still in flooded areas in Marikina City, Quezon City, Cainta, and some towns in Bulacan.

“We call on the GSIS, SSS, Pag-Ibig, Philhealth, and OWWA to immediately set up customer-friendly one-stop shops in areas most hit by the recent floods so that the members of these various agencies need only to proceed to one place to apply for appropriate assistance” Ople said, while stressing that these agencies must now demonstrate to their members their willingness and capacity to help sans red tape and onsite.

While most flood victims appreciate relief goods, it is also important to note that most of them have not been able to go to work since Saturday and perhaps till the rest of the week. “The breadwinners in affected families that belong to any one of these agencies would require cash assistance so that they can immediate repair their homes, provide food and medicines for the family, and rebuild their lives,” Ople noted.

A one-stop shop that would gather all of these agencies in areas most accessible to the calamity victims would be most welcome. Ople said mobile assistance clinics sponsored by these agencies would also be welcome.

“While ordinary Filipinos pool their money and donate their clothes to help flood victims, we would like to see the same kind of cooperation and concern from government corporations and pension as well as trust funds owned by workers in both the private and public sectors and OFWs,” the Ople Center stressed.