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Erap for President (again): His Plans for OFWs
Apr 22, 2010
McArthur’s famous line “I shall return” seems to be the former President Joseph Ejercito Estrada’s favorite quote as he, again, aspire for Presidential position in May 10 election. Together with Jejomar Binay as his Vice President, can Erap win the race again? Will he regain the trust of “masa” including our modern day heroes, the overseas Filipino workers (OFWs)?
Get to know Erap more
Jose Marcelo Ejercito or simply Erap, son of Emilio Ejercito, Sr., a former Chief Sanitary Engineer of Manila, and Maria Marcelo, was born on April 19, 1937 in Tondo, Manila. Studied his primary education at the Ateneo de Manila University and pursue his college at the Mapua Institute of Technology and took up Engineering course. Unfortunately he was not able to finish it since he entered in showbiz.
As Actor
He is an accomplished movie actor and producer, five-time Best Actor awardee, giving him rare place in the FAMAS Hall of Fame in 1981 for Best Actor and 1984 as producer.
In Politics
Mayor
In 1967, Erap run for mayoralty position the Municipality (now City) of San Juan and lucky won a seat. This was the start of his 16 continuous year of tenure as San Juan mayor. He was one of the hundreds of local government officials suspected of malfeasance and anomalies and were asked to step down in the office when Cory Aquino assumed the presidential position in 1986. He left the municipality of San Juan treasury registered with P24-million in savings and infrastructure development including the establishment of the first san Juan Municipal High School, the Agora complex, a modern slaughterhouse, a sprawling Government Center with a post Office, a mini-park and the concreting of 98 percent of San Juan’s roads and alleys.
Senator
The following year, after being removed as mayor, Estrada ran for senate and won a seat under the Grand Alliance for Democracy (GAD) party. In Senate, he was appointed Chairman of the Committee on Public Works, Vice-Chairman of the Committees on Health, Natural Resources and Ecology and Urban Planning. Erap is one of the “Magnificent 12” who favored the termination of the RP-US Military Bases Agreement and was recognized with the passage of the bills on irrigation project and the protection and proliferation of carabaos.
Vice President
In 1992, Estrada won Vice President of Fidel Ramos and was assigned chairman of the Presidential Anti-Crime Commission (PACC) and designated as Presidential Adviser on Crime Prevention and Law. During his tenure his fight against kidnappers and bank robbers, together with “hoodlums in uniform,” “hoodlums in robes” and illegal recruiters was a success and awarded him 85% performance rating. Likewise, Estrada funded the Philippine Drug Abuse Resistance Education (PhilDARE) Program to deal with the increasing problem of drug abuse among the youth.
President
“The economic team of the present administration during its first year has been superior in cohesiveness, effectiveness and clarity in purpose when compared to the equivalent teams during the first years of [the previous administrations] … President Estrada’s first economic team is among the best in Asia.”
Dr. Bernardo Villegas
Filipino economist
Estrada’s winning the May 11, 1998 elections made history in the Philippine elections, gathering the biggest ever registered of almost 11 million votes from Filipino voters, Erap swipe the Presidency.
During Estrada’s administration, he focused on housing program for the poor, agriculture and initiate means to lower the cost of medicine, peace and order through the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Task Force (PAOCTF) aims to minimize, if not totally eradicate, car theft and kidnapping in Metro Manila. This campaign brings the Philippine National Police achieved a record-high trust rating of +53 percent, which is first in the Philippine history. He signed and implemented the Clean Air Act, issued Executive Order 151 or the Farmer’s Trust Fund.
Unfortunately not all were satisfied with what Estrada has done, on January 19, 2001 113,000-strong Armed Forces of the Philippines led by AFP chief Angelo Reyes, withdraw their support for him, together with students, professionals, and various civic groups, they gathered at EDSA Shrine asking him to resign. The following day, January 20, the Supreme Court announced that the Presidential position is already vacant, that ended his two year term as President.
His Platform for OFWs
Protecting and Promoting OFWs: He envisions a Filipino working abroad because he just wants to not he need to. Here are the plans of Erap for overseas Filipino workers.
1. Ensuring that they get the best benefits and proper protection against abuse abroad. This will be achieved by:
(1) Strengthening bilateral relations with receiving countries.
(2) Supporting our labor attaches and welfare officers.
2. Minimizing the social cost borne by separation from their families. This will be achieved by creating a special commission under the Department of Social Welfare and Development specifically to monitor and address the concerns of the families that the OFWs leave behind.
3. Encouraging their return. All efforts will be made to encourage OFWs to return, including:
(1) Giving them incentives to invest their money here.
(2) Creating a commission to study how best to achieve OFWs when they return home.
