Pinoys Abroad

Expat: Pinoys abroad tagged 'thieves' due to corruption in RP
02/19/2009 | 11:11 AM

MANILA, Philippines- Reports of widespread corruption in the country make Filipinos overseas “look like thieves" to some people in host countries, an expatriate said in a letter to a senator.

Senator Manuel Roxas said a Canada-based Filipino, Johnny de Leon, wrote to him the disheartening letter via E-mail.

“Filipinos now living abroad are being insulted because of the brazen corruption in this government. Filipinos abroad, especially Fil-Ams, despise the dishonesty of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s allies," Roxas said in a statement.

In his letter, De Leon wrote how the Filipino community in Canada boycotted a supermarket after a Canadian store worker reportedly shouted “You all Filipinos are thieves!" to a Pinoy child picking candy at the sweets section.

"Paano nagkaroon ng ganong mentality ang dayuhang tinderang ito kung hindi niya nabasa o napanood sa TV ang mga kurakutan diyan sa atin?" De Leon wrote.

[That Canadian store worker wouldn’t have had that mentality if he didn’t see on TV, or read about corruption in the Philippines.]

De Leon continued: “Mas maganda pa noong panahon ni Marcos, kung totoo man, si Marcos lang ang nagnanakaw pero marami namang nakitang naipagawa, ngayon lahat halos ng may utang na loob [kay] Gloria na ipinuwesto niya sa gobyerno, walang takot magnakaw."

[It was better during Ferdinand Marcos’ time; even if they said he was corrupt, one could see the things he had done for the country. On the contrary, all Gloria Arroyo appointees are fearless in being corrupt.]

De Leon stressed that he is especially suspicious of the President’s husband, First Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo.

Senator Roxas said that Filipinos overseas are receiving bad reputation lately due to the World Bank report that blacklisted eight firms for engaging in collusive practices under the bank-financed road projects in the Philippines.

Opposition Senator Panfilo Lacson tagged the First Gentleman as one of those engaged in the corrupt practices, even as the Philippine Senate is holding hearings on the issue.

"Napakasakit isipin na ang mga kapatid ko at pamilya nila diyan na nagkukumahog sa pagta-trabaho ng marangal para lang may mailaman sa tiyan ay madadamay na mawalan ng dangal dahil lamang sa pagnanakaw ng iilang tao.

[It hurts to think that my siblings and their families who are toiling hard to earn a decent living will be stripped of their dignity because of corrupt practices of a few people.]

While Roxas said that it is not too late for the President to redeem herself, he said she needs to muster enough political will to make accountable those who have “shamed" the country.

“Our country's honor is important. As president of this country, it is her responsibility to preserve our reputation," he said.

For De Leon, the damage has already been done to Filipino migrant workers and expatriates like him who are judged unfairly because of the Philippine government’s bad reputation.

There are over eight million Filipinos overseas, data from the Commission on Filipinos Overseas showed. Of this number, about four million are considered overseas Filipino workers. - Mark Joseph Ubalde, GMANews.TV