Filipino groups in Hong Kong have called for a stop on the integration of the P550 terminal fee into the price of airline tickets starting October 1, saying it will only add “more pressure and stress” to OFWs. “It is absurd for us to pay the terminal fee and then just have it refunded,” the groups said in a Unity Statement released Monday. “It will only add more pressure and stress for OFWs and for sure, many will be unable to get the refund and thus the payment will only go again to the government’s coffers.” Among the groups that signed the statement are Bagong Alyansang Makabayan -Hong Kong, Filipino Migrant Association, Filipino Migrant Domestic Workers Union, Abra Migrant Workers Welfare Association, and the Abra Tinguian Ilocano Society. Under Republic Act 10022 or the Amended Migrant Workers Act of 2010, OFWs are exempted from paying terminal fee if they can present an exemption certificate issued by the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) or the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA). The groups said airport authorities and the government “must recognize this right of migrant workers instead of subjecting us to more inconvenience and fees.” The integration aims to lessen the queuing at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport and is expected to benefit at least seven million passengers who do not have to line up just to pay the terminal fee. But according to the Filipino groups, “if the government wants to ease the difficulties of non-OFW passengers, it should not be at the cost of more the thousands of OFWs that leave the country every day. The groups also called for the abolition of the Overseas Employment Certificate (OEC). “The OEC should not be needed anymore just to prove that we are OFWs because our passport, contract and other documents we have are more than sufficient for this purpose,” they said. gmanetwork/news/story/381374/pinoyabroad/news/pinoy-groups-in-hk-call-for-stop-on-terminal-fee-integration
Posted on: Tue, 30 Sep 2014 03:03:20 +0000
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