Wednesday, Jan 29, 2014
Dubai: Filipino expatriates in Dubai and the northern emirates can expect services at the Philippine Consulate-General to become more efficient as the constant problem of shortage of staff will be addressed this year.
The Department of Foreign Affairs in Manila has approved the request to deploy 10 additional personnel hopefully within the year, Consul-General Frank Cimafranca told reporters on Wednesday.
Currently, the 27 personnel at the consulate cater to an estimated 300,000 Filipinos in Dubai and the northern emirates. The staff augmentation will bring the staff to client ratio currently at one for every 11,000 Filipinos to one per 8,100.
“We hope that with this additional staff we will be able to deliver more efficient services to our compatriots. We will also double the number of ATN (Assistance to Nationals) officers and beef up consular services, especially in passport processing,” Consul-General Frank Cimafranca said.
Three out of the 10 additional staff will be deployed in the ATN Section to add to the current two ATN officers whose responsibilities include visiting Filipinos in prisons, assisting Filipinos with legal problems to visit police stations, courts, and helping resolve conflicts.
Vice-Consul Ryan Pondoc, who arrived in the UAE in last month from his post at the Philippine Embassy in Tokyo, is the new head of the ATN Section. Pondoc said his six years of experience in Japan, including helping Filipinos when the tsunami hit the country in 2011, has prepared him for the challenges of his new post.
“I am used to working under pressure, taking from my experience in Japan. In general, we will do our best to assist our nationals while taking into consideration our limited resources,” Pondoc said.
Labour-related cases top the most common cases the ATN Section receives although they pass these on to their affiliate labour office on Al Ghusais. The so-called love cases, which include sex outside marriage and extra-marital affairs, are the second most common. Third on the list are abandoned children or those whose biological parents have gone missing after leaving them in the care of friends.
Consul Giovanni Palec, who temporarily handled the ATN section from late December to January, said the section’s main challenge is being able to attend all ATN cases here and in other emirates. But with the additional staff, they hope to be able to divide the workload to better serve their clientele.
During the briefing, Cimafranca said seven of the current staff members have finished their tour of duty and will be called home this year but they will be replaced as well.
By Janice Ponce de Leon Staff Reporter
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