Ambassador of the Philippines to Qatar Wilfredo Santos. UFOQ Chairman Frank Jamandre said that the results of the initial meeting of UFOQ council officers this week will be immediately conveyed to the ambassador.  Right: United Filipino Organisations in Qatar chairman Frank Jamandre.

By Peter Alagos


The umbrella organisation for Filipino workers’ groups in Qatar is planning to petition the Philippine Bureau of Customs’ (BoC) plans to open packages sent by OFWs to their families back home.
Frank Jamandre, chairman of the United Filipino Organisations in Qatar (UFOQ), said UFOQ’s council officers are planning to meet within the week to discuss plans to launch a signature campaign among OFWs in Qatar to petition the BoC’s move to open the packages, otherwise known as “balikbayan boxes.”
The BoC’s controversial anti-smuggling campaign has earned the ire of most, if not all, Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) worldwide. The BoC argued that it is necessary to open balikbayan boxes to curb the smuggling of items like illegal firearms and prohibited drugs.
Jamandre said the issue will be tackled during the 4th UFOQ Quarterly Membership Meeting slated on September 11 at the Philippine Embassy.
But he stressed that the results of the initial meeting of UFOQ council officers this week will be immediately conveyed to Philippine Ambassador to Qatar Wilfredo Santos.
“We need to convene first in order to decide how to approach the issue legally. We are not protesting against the Philippine government but we only want to air the grievances of thousands of OFWs in Qatar through due process. Also, UFOQ does not intend to bypass any authority such as the Philippine Embassy in Qatar,” Jamandre told Community.
He added: “We do not have any means to stop the BoC from opening our balikbayan boxes. However, a petition letter signed by Qatar-based OFWs and their respective families could help get the attention of the government. This petition letter could be forwarded to President Benigno Aquino through the Philippine Embassy in Qatar.”
Jamandre emphasised that he is confident that a “massive campaign” could help secure the needed signatures from members of the 165 Filipino organisations under UFOQ, including other OFWs in Qatar numbering more than 200,000.
“All OFWs, not only in Qatar, will benefit from the petition letter. In the long run, it will help many Filipinos, whose sole intention is to bring joy to their families through these balikbayan boxes,” Jamandre said.
In a statement sent to Community, Philippine Senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos warned BoC commissioner Albert Lina “against carrying out further restrictions on the use of balikbayan boxes by the OFWs.”
“I don’t understand this oppression of our OFWs,” Marcos said, referring to the BoC’s plan to implement a random inspection of balikbayan boxes as a strategy to curb smuggling.
“The priority problem of smuggling is not the balikbayan boxes. We have heard of 2,000 containers that had disappeared and could not be found by the BoC. We received news that even trash from another country found its way to Philippine soil. Why are they not looking into these thoroughly?” he said.
 While he agreed with the BoC campaign against smuggling, Marcos said it should focus on big syndicates operating “inside its own backyard.”