
OVP open to help distressed OFWs — VP Sara
Duterte made the remark during her visit last week to the Filipino community in Kuwait. She left the country on Friday.
She shared that their helper at home chose to return to the Philippines because her employer did not provide her with meals.
'Huwag ninyong ipagpalit ang inyong pagkatao, ang inyong dignidad bilang isang tao. Kasi yung treatment o pakikitungo na ganyan ay hindi makatao,' the Vice President said during her speech before a group of OFWs.
(Do not trade your dignity as a person, because that kind of treatment is inhumane.)
'Bumalik na lang kayo sa Pilipinas, pag-usapan na lang natin sa Office of the Vice President kung saan ba kami makatulong,' she added.
(Just return to the Philippines, and let's see what the Office of the Vice President can do to help.)
The OVP earlier said Duterte flew to Kuwait to join Filipinos there for a gathering to discuss concerns and issues impacting their sector.
In Kuwait, the Vice President reiterated the importance of input from OFWs, particularly in sharing the positive things they see abroad.
'Mahalaga ang inyong input. Dahil kayo 'yung mga nakatira at nagkatrabaho sa iba't ibang lugar sa mundo. Dahil nakita nyo na ang the best sa ibang bansa na hindi ninyo nakikita sa ating bansa,' Duterte said.
(Your input is important. You are the ones who have lived and worked in different parts of the world. You've seen the best in other countries, the things we don't see in our country.)
The OVP said that after the Kuwait visit, the Vice President will "proceed to continue working on the release of our former head of state Rodrigo Duterte, who was forcibly taken from Philippine soil.'
The elder Duterte is currently detained in the International Criminal Court detention facility in The Hague for charges of crimes against humanity in connection with his deadly war on drugs when he was mayor of Davao City and later, as President of the Philippines.
Last month, the ICC granted the request of the camp of former President Rodrigo Duterte to suspend the tribunal's decision on his request for interim release until his defense lawyers have collated all the needed supporting information. — RF, GMA Integrated News
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


GMA Network
10 hours ago
- GMA Network
Duterte camp says ICC violated time limit for probe —VP Sara
The camp of former president Rodrigo Duterte has questioned the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in handling his case, according to Vice President Sara Duterte. The Vice President made the remark during her visit to the Filipino community in Kuwait on Friday. 'Meron po silang finile yung pag-question ng jurisdiction ng korte sa kaso ni dating Pangulong Rodrigo Duterte. Simple lang ang sinasabi nila. Nag-imbestiga kayo, lampas na ang isang taon na pwede kayo mag-imbestiga. Dumaan ang isang taon bago kayo nagsimula mag-imbestiga. Kaya hindi na yan puwede,' the Vice President said. (They filed a motion questioning the court's jurisdiction over the case of former President Rodrigo Duterte. What they're saying is simple: You conducted an investigation, but it was beyond the one-year period allowed for you to do so. A year had already passed before you even began investigating. So now, it's no longer valid.) The Duterte elder was arrested in the Philippines by local authorities on March 11 on charges of crimes against humanity for his deadly war on drugs when he was mayor of Davao City and when he was president of the Philippines. He is currently detained in the Scheveningen Prison in The Hague. Government records showed that there were over 6,000 drug suspects killed in police operations during the previous administration's drug war. Human rights organizations, however, said that the death toll may have reached 30,000 due to unreported incidents. The Vice President also said that if there is no period of investigation, the accused could be probed for his entire life. TIMELINE: The Philippines and the ICC Earlier this month, the elder Duterte's defense team asked the Appeals Chamber of the ICC to disqualify Prosecutor Karim Khan from the case on the grounds that he "failed to disclose a grievous conflict of interest." In July, the ICC granted Duterte's request to suspend the tribunal's decision on his request for interim release until his defense lawyers have collated all the needed supporting information. 'Nahanap yun ng mga abogado ni dating Pangulong Duterte at nag-file sila ng request for interim release lalong-lalo na dahil sa kanyang edad na 80 years old,' the Vice President said, referring to the country for his father's interim release. (Former President Duterte's lawyers identified the country and filed a request for interim release, especially considering he is 80 years old.) However, the younger Duterte did not reveal the country during her speech. Rogrido's condition The younger Duterte also said her father is in good condition but has gotten thinner. 'Ito yung mga pinakapayat niya na nakita ko sa buong buhay ko,' the Vice President said. 'Binabantayan ang kanyang kinakain at binabantayan ang kanyang timbang ng doktor. Kaya ako naman, tiwala ako sa doktor na kapag sinabi ng doktor, okay lang yan, ay okay lang yan,' she added. (This is the thinnest I've ever seen him in my entire life. The doctor is monitoring what he eats and keeping track of his weight. I trust the doctor, so if he says he's okay, then he's okay.) — BM, GMA Integrated News


GMA Network
12 hours ago
- GMA Network
OVP open to help distressed OFWs — VP Sara
The Office of the Vice President (OVP) is willing to assist distressed Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) who choose to return to the Philippines instead of continuing to work abroad, Vice President Sara Duterte said in a statement. Duterte made the remark during her visit last week to the Filipino community in Kuwait. She left the country on Friday. She shared that their helper at home chose to return to the Philippines because her employer did not provide her with meals. 'Huwag ninyong ipagpalit ang inyong pagkatao, ang inyong dignidad bilang isang tao. Kasi yung treatment o pakikitungo na ganyan ay hindi makatao,' the Vice President said during her speech before a group of OFWs. (Do not trade your dignity as a person, because that kind of treatment is inhumane.) 'Bumalik na lang kayo sa Pilipinas, pag-usapan na lang natin sa Office of the Vice President kung saan ba kami makatulong,' she added. (Just return to the Philippines, and let's see what the Office of the Vice President can do to help.) The OVP earlier said Duterte flew to Kuwait to join Filipinos there for a gathering to discuss concerns and issues impacting their sector. In Kuwait, the Vice President reiterated the importance of input from OFWs, particularly in sharing the positive things they see abroad. 'Mahalaga ang inyong input. Dahil kayo 'yung mga nakatira at nagkatrabaho sa iba't ibang lugar sa mundo. Dahil nakita nyo na ang the best sa ibang bansa na hindi ninyo nakikita sa ating bansa,' Duterte said. (Your input is important. You are the ones who have lived and worked in different parts of the world. You've seen the best in other countries, the things we don't see in our country.) The OVP said that after the Kuwait visit, the Vice President will "proceed to continue working on the release of our former head of state Rodrigo Duterte, who was forcibly taken from Philippine soil.' The elder Duterte is currently detained in the International Criminal Court detention facility in The Hague for charges of crimes against humanity in connection with his deadly war on drugs when he was mayor of Davao City and later, as President of the Philippines. Last month, the ICC granted the request of the camp of former President Rodrigo Duterte to suspend the tribunal's decision on his request for interim release until his defense lawyers have collated all the needed supporting information. — RF, GMA Integrated News

GMA Network
a day ago
- GMA Network
Comelec seeks 'overhaul' of Omnibus Election Code
Filipinos vote during the midterm elections, at a polling station in Taguig City, May 12, 2025. REUTERS/ Lisa Marie David The Commission on Elections on Saturday proposed an ''overhaul'' of the 40-year-old Omnibus Election Code. 'Ang ating Omnibus Election Code ay 1985 pa. Wala pa itong pagbabago. Mahirap magpatupad ng batas ngayong moderno na tayo. Marami nang nangyari, madami nang pagbabago pero mga lumang batas pa rin ang ating ipinatutupad,' Comelec Chairperson George Garcia said in an interview with Super Radyo dzBB. (Our Omnibus Election Code was passed in 1985. It has not changed yet. It's hard to implement laws now that we are in modern times. A lot has happened, a lot of changes have occurred but we are still enforcing old laws.) 'Dapat hindi amendment, dapat tawagin nating revision. Kinakailangang overhaul talaga. Magmula sa registration, filing ng candidacy, mga disqualification, at cancellation ng candidacy,' he added. (We should call them revisions instead of amendments. We really need an overhaul, starting from registration, filing of candidacies, disqualifications, and cancellation of candidacy.) In 2023, the Comelec finished the 964-page proposed amendments to the OEC or Batas Pambansa Blg. 881. Among the changes proposed by the Comelec are criminalizing nuisance candidacies, restricting candidate substitution to cases of death and disqualification, prohibiting premature campaigning once the certificate of candidacy (COC) has been filed, and updating campaign spending limits. It also proposed to amend the rules on party-list groups, restrict the number of seats that can be held, support underrepresented groups, and impose restrictions on campaign contributions. Garcia also took note of initiatives to ban political dynasties. 'Maaaring ito na ang tamang panahon na magkaroon ng tunay na batas upang maipatupad ang anti-political dynasty provision ng ating Saligang Batas,' he said. (This may be the right time to have a law to implement the anti-political dynasty provision of our Constitution.) The Comelec also sought authority to expand the COC filing requirements. 'Sana bigyan kami ng kapangyarihan na mag-require na dagdag na dokumento sa mga nagpa-file ng kandidatura, halimbawa, birth certificate,' Garcia said. (I hope we are given the power to require additional documents from those filing candidacies, for example, a birth certificate) Senator Imee Marcos recently filed Senate Bill 425 seeking to revise and recodify all election statutes, saying certain provisions of the OEC are "outrightly ill-suited for modern times." —Jiselle Anne Casucian/VBL, GMA Integrated News