Slaughtermen poised to become OFWs with government help

By Rachelle M. Nessia

Leo Enriquez is excited. There’s a sparkle in his eyes. He keeps rubbing his hands together, tapping one foot on the floor, and frequently checking his mobile phone for messages from his recruitment agency. A former drug addict, the 38-year old is on a different kind of high these days. He is about to become a “modern-day hero.” 

In less than a month’s time from now, Enriquez, together with his friend, Eugene Tero, 34, will join the growing ranks of millions of Filipinos toiling abroad as Overseas Filipino Workers (OFW), pegged to be 2.4 million in 2010 or comprising about 2 percent of the country’s total population, according to a report from the National Statistical Coordination Board. 

For Enriquez and Tero and most of the OFWs, the road to living the Filipino dream of prosperity was pockmarked by hardships. Enriquez fell prey to the clutches of drug addiction and drove his family to financial ruin. Tero, on the other hand, was abandoned by his parents while still a child. However, both men set out to rise above their misfortunes, with a little help from the Philippine government. 

Addiction 

Enriquez was working at the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology in Cebu City when he picked up a liking for illegal drugs, particularly shabu. “It was the environment there that also contributed to my addiction,” he said. 

What started out as “just a taste” soon developed into a full-blown drug habit for nearly five years, between 1999 to mid-2004. He spent his salary on drugs. When that was no longer enough, he emptied his house of appliances, furniture, and belongings in exchange for illegal drugs. “I would send my wife to the market, and once she'd left, I would get our TV and trade it for shabu,” Enriquez recalled. 

He eventually lost his job after he stopped showing up for work and was declared AWOL (absent without leave). Enriquez could no longer provide for his wife and his three children, much less sustain his drug cravings. “My older brother offered my wife money to leave me and bring the kids to her hometown so she can start a new life away from me, but she turned it down because she was afraid of what I might do if she left,” he said. 

It was his wife’s unwavering loyalty to him, and the fact that they have become so poor his children could not even afford to buy candies, that made Enriquez realize he needed help fast. He decided to voluntarily seek rehabilitation. 

With his brother’s help, he met with then-Governor and now 2nd District Congressman George Arnaiz who helped him get in at the Negros Oriental Drug Rehabilitation Center. There, for four months, Enriquez worked hard at getting sober, eventually becoming a drug counselor. 

When he finally left the rehabilitation center, Enriquez was a new man. “Since I walked out of the center, I’ve not fallen back on any of my vices again whether drugs, alcohol, or smoking,” he said. 

Abandonment 

Tero was only five years old when his parents broke up. His parents separated themselves not only from each other but from their children as well. Tero and his older sister, a special child, were handed over to an uncle who raised them. 

The pain of being abandoned at an early age left an emotional scar on Tero. 

Because he was basically left to fend for himself while growing up, Tero became independent at an early age and thrived on it. “I had to work extra hard to survive, for myself and my sister. I had no choice because my parents left us,” he said. 

As a working student, he became vulnerable to vices brought on by peer pressure. When he got married in 2005, his wife became his motivation to overcome his vices. “My wife and my sister are now my sources of inspiration. I was able to get away from my vices because I realized that life is too short and it should not be wasted,” shared Tero. 

Government scholars 

Enriquez and Tero - one a victim of addiction and one of abandonment – found hope at the end of their long, dark tunnel after they availed of a scholarship grant for a skills training course on slaughtering offered by the Technical Education Skills Development Authority (TESDA). 

TESDA is a government agency that primarily carries out skills training courses geared to making the Filipino workforce competitive here and abroad. 

Enriquez took TESDA’s livestock slaughtering course from July to September of 2007, while Tero took the course between April 2009 to January 2010. The course trained them on the proper and standard slaughtering procedures of livestock, such as flaying, brisket cutting, and evisceration. 

Tero and Enriquez are two of the almost 500 graduates that TESDA has produced in its slaughtering course administered at the Dumaguete City Slaughterhouse since the course was first implemented in 2007. Both men were recipients of the Training for Work School Program (TWSP). 

Records from TESDA office in Dumaguete City showed that in 2011, there were 862 Negrenses who availed of the skills training courses as scholars either of the Private Education Student Financial Assistance (404) or the TWSP (458). The same year, there were also 4,613 graduates of TESDA’s short-term skills training programs such as slaughtering, welding and fabrication, housekeeping, and commercial cooking, among others. 

A week before being interviewed for this story, Tero and Enriquez were informed that their working visas have already been approved. They have also completed their Pre-Departure Orientation Seminar (PDOS) administered by the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration, a requirement for all departing OFWs. 

With their bags packed, Enriquez and Tero are scheduled to leave for Australia on June 10. Are they ready to become OFWs in the Land Down Under? “Very ready,” replied Enriquez and Tero at the same time. 

Both men are eager to start a new life in Australia. Their employers at a meat processing company based in New South Wales, Australia, allowed them to bring their wives and children with them when they depart. Their monthly salary is equivalent to P180,000 for a four-year contract, excluding overtime pay. Their employer has also arranged housing for them in New South Wales for a reasonable rent. 

Enriquez said he has a lot to thank the government for, because without their help he wouldn’t have the chance to get back on his feet again and make up for what he and his family lost due to his drug addiction. “If not for TESDA and the help of Cong. Arnaiz, I would not have had this wonderful opportunity for my wife and my children,” he said. Tero echoed the same sentiment in thanking TESDA for paving the way for him and his wife to start their family in Australia. 

Both promised to send the TESDA office in Dumaguete City a greeting card when they arrive in Australia to let them know they have arrived safely. Tero laughingly added, “And chocolates, too!” (RMN/PIA Negros Oriental)