Miriam: Working abroad should only be an option

Leaving the Philippines to work abroad should only be an option and not a necessity, according to presidential aspirant Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago.

"The best way we can help OFWs (overseas Filipino workers) is not to make it a necessity for them to leave. Pwedeng it is an option but it should not be a necessity," said Santiago at the third leg of the PiliPinas Debates 2016 Sunday.

Millions of Filipinos working overseas fear coming back to the Philippines because of lack of job opportunities.

Dubai maid Cristy Guinto, 39, is just one of them. "Gustong-gusto ko na pong maalagaan yung bunso ko kaya lang po sa dami pa ng binabayaran ko, hindi ko po alam kung kailan pa ako aabot hanggang dito," she says.

READ: Ailing OFW dreams of coming home to kids' embrace

Santiago, in response to Guinto's concerns, stressed the need to build the Philippines' own economy to be able to provide more job opportunities.

"To the OFWs, your best chance of a job when you come back to the Philippines is if the ASEAN Economic Community begins. All the 10 ASEAN member-countries are now members of an economic community and in that way, many jobs will open for us," she said.

"That way, we become competitive with the rest of the world and we no longer have to pay special attention to OFWs because it is a choice, not a necessity," she added.

Santiago nonetheless also emphasized the importance of providing legal assistance to Filipino workers abroad. There should be a hotline to the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA), she said.

LOOK: Overseas Absentee Voters, 2016 elections