My August 7 Votes

In addition to the two measures that I sponsored namely, opposition to increases in government fees and anti-illegal recruitment campaign, here are my other votes yesterday:

Approval of Items under First Reading (Nos. 143 – 217);

Approval of the Resolution/Ordinance on Supplemental Budget No. 1 for Calendar Year 2007 in the amount of P424 Million

Approval of PALC of San Vicente Homeowners Association for its housing project located at Sitio Mohon, Barangay Langub with an area of 13,688 square meters;

Approval of the Resolution/Ordinance for the temporary closure of certain roads for the Kadayawan Festival;

Approval of Resolution for the conduct of a comprehensive study on the health situation of the city;

Approval of the Resolution to request fund support from Senator Juan Miguel Zubiri for the construction of an overpass at the Carlos P. Garcia Highway in front of La Verna Subdivision;

Approval of the Resolution for a MOA with the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA) for the establishment of an ecological solid waste management system;

Illegal recruitment

The City Legal Office has given its thumbs up July 20 to the proposed Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between the city government and the Philippine Overseas Workers Administration (POEA) to intensify the anti-illegal recruitment campaign in the city.

The legal opinion said the MOA is "free from any legal infirmity."

I can now sponsor the measure in our next session on August 7. There would be no session on July 31.

If approved, the city would become the first LGU outside Metro Manila to forge the same pact with the POEA. Davao City is tagged as one of the leading recruitment areas in the country and also considered as a key human trafficking centers in southern Philippines.

POEA Mindanao Center chief Francis Domingo has been working hard to make the city safe for aspiring overseas workers.

Three years ago, I also sponsored an Ordinance requiring non-Davao City-based recruitment agencies to register with the city government. This way, we are able to track their activities and their recruits. Yet, illegal recruitment remains rampant.

Sometime five years ago, I also sponsored a Resolution urging the POEA to assign one of its Deputy Administrators to be based in Davao City. I remember Presidential Assistant for Mindanao and now head of the Peace Process, Secretary Jesus Dureza, endorsing the measure. Perhaps, the POEA needs to revisit this proposal and promote Domingo as full time Deputy Administrator.