Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 7) — The Senate Committee on Migrant Workers on Wednesday slammed the “ineffective” monitoring system of Catalist Manpower Services, the private recruitment agency of slain Overseas Filipino Worker (OFW) Jullebee Ranara.
“Your monitoring is ineffective. Inutil yung monitoring niyo,” Sen. Joel Villanueva said during the committee hearing. “You say every day you check, you monitor [tapos] the day before she died, ganito yung situation.”
[Translation: Your monitoring is ineffective. Your monitoring is useless. You say you check every day, you monitor and then the day before she dies, this is what happened.]
Villanueva also cited statements that Ranara had reported the abuses committed by her employer to her parents. However, the recruitment agency failed to receive the reports of abuse, Catalist lawyer David Castillion said.
Sen. Raffy Tulfo, chairperson of the committee, said the quarterly monitoring of OFWs in Kuwait should be reduced to weekly or “at least twice a month or at most, once a month.”
Bernard Olalia, undersecretary of the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) Licensing and Adjudication Services, said Catalist’s license to operate has now been canceled.
According to Castillion, the recruitment agency currently has six pending recruitment violations, excluding the case of Ranara.
The 35-year-old Ranara was deployed in 2021, and was found burnt in a desert in Kuwait on Jan. 21. The suspect is the 17-year-old son of her employer, who is now detained in Kuwait.
DMW Acting Undersecretary Maria Anthonette Velasco-Allones said the Kuwaiti government is providing legal assistance in the investigation of the Ranara murder case, which is covered by the bilateral agreement of the Philippines and Kuwait.
READ: Kuwaiti foreign minister condemns OFW killing, to help resolve case
Strict screening of employers
Earlier, Tulfo urged the DMW to implement a pre-screening evaluation where the employers, and their families, will have to pass a neuropsychiatric exam and acquire a police clearance.
He added that the bilateral agreements between the Philippines and other countries with regards to deploying OFWs must allow Filipinos to practice their culture, like in the case of Ranara using Tiktok.
Earlier accounts stated that the suspect in Ranara’s killing forced open her door and flogged her because the domestic helper was discovered filming a TikTok video.
Tulfo also called for the establishment of an association of OFW employers and an association of OFWs to have regular meetings to solve concerns of both parties.
From ₱5 million capitalization of private recruitment agencies, Tulfo urged DMW to increase the sum to ₱1 billion.
READ: DMW to halt deployment of first-time household workers to Kuwait
