Overhaul PDOS now

The Pre-Departure Orientation Seminar (PDOS) for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) cannot save undocumented workers or tourists like Mary Jane Veloso who, wittingly or unwittingly, find themselves serving as cross-country drug mules for doping syndicates.

But what the PDOS can do for OFWs, aside from warning them against accepting potential contrabands like drugs in their baggage, is to arm them with sufficient knowledge so they do not run afoul with the laws of their host countries while making their work bearable, if not hassle-free.

The problem is that the PDOS as we know it today is next to useless after it was delegated by the government to private PDOS providers. Said PDOS providers have turned the program into a purely money-making venture devoid of any real knowledge transfer to OFWs.

As if the PDOS modules being used are not outdated, incomplete or not country specific enough to really help OFWs adjust, blend in or excel in their alien work environments, many rogue PDOS providers just use the one-session seminars to sell the competing remittance services of banks in exchange for hefty commissions.

The time has come for the government (paging DOLE, OWWA and POEA) to really take a closer look and to overhaul the PDOS so that the modules are updated regularly, the speakers are certified to have first-hand knowledge about what they are talking about, and that the PDOS providers are not really only there for the money but because they also have pro-OFW advocacies.

And while at it, can the government ban the sale of whatever (ball pens, papers, snacks, and especially remittance services and additional insurance coverage) during the PDOS. Otherwise, let the OFWs forgo attending the presently defective PDOS because it’s an utter waste of their time. -end-