Overseas foreign workers urged to avoid using assumed names

DAVAO CITY, Nov 20 (PIA) Ambassador Renato Pedro Villa, special assistant to the Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers’ Affairs of the Department of Foreign Affairs warned that penalties and jail-term await those who use assumed names in working overseas.

He said that workers using assumed names may succeed on the first try, but can no longer get through once they process their documents with the DFA.

“We do not encourage the use of assumed identity as it gives more problems to the worker once he is out of the country,” he said.

Villa said an assumed name gives difficulty for relatives to trace the person and to claim end service benefits once death of the overseas worker occurs.

He said this malpractice is now addressed with the use of the electronic passport, where assumed names can be traced easily.

“The electronic passport captures the biometrics like the photo and fingerprints of the applicants and consequently be included in the data base.  Once an assumed name is used, it can now be traced and will surely face arrest, especially if the person using the name will not match with the biometrics,” he said.

He lauded the Overseas Workers’ Welfare Administration for holding a seminar on its mandate, programs and services for overseas foreign workers which has enhanced awareness on migration procedures and processes.

Villa said even offices facilitating the documents of overseas foreign workers must know the policies of agencies concerned with migration like the DFA, Department of Labor and Employment and the OWWA.

“Education must be a continuing process especially as more concerns of the OFWs arise,” he said.

Villa said even applicants to overseas jobs and family members of overseas foreign workers can get in touch with the local OWWA and the DFA in order to clarify their inquiries.

Earlier, Eduardo Bellido, director of the the OWWA 11 revealed  the use of assumed name by an overseas worker hailing from Davao Oriental.

He discouraged the use of an assumed name as it bring more problems than solutions to an overseas worker.  (PIA 11-Joey Sem G. Dalumpines)