Vice President Leni Robredo and running mate Senator Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan, are set to sign a covenant with the Leni Urban Poor Council (LENI UP), a coalition of urban poor organizations nationwide, that aims to address the immediate issues faced by the urban poor in the country.
The covenant signing will take place on Monday at the Leni-Kiko Volunteer Center in Quezon City. The event will be livestreamed via the Robredo People’s Council and Leni Urban Poor Facebook pages.
Meanwhile, Robredo said she would push for government services that will address the day-to-day challenges faced by Business Processing Outsourcing (BPO) employees, recognizing that the nature of their work is different from the rest of the workforce.
For example, the presidential aspirant noted that one of the most pressing issues of the BPO industry is the safety and security of employees, especially when it comes to public transportation.
Robredo and Pangilinan’s programs for the urban poor—who are facing the most difficult challenges especially as the pandemic enters its third year—will be based on honest and good governance and human rights advocacy.
Their pact with LENI UP contains concrete action steps to address in-city housing, on-site redevelopment, free housing in National Housing Authority resettlement sites, pandemic recovery and assistance, job opportunities, and the establishment of a People’s Council in all agencies concerned with infrastructure and housing to ensure that all the needs of the urban poor are met.
There are currently 4.5 million Filipinos, or equivalent to 1.8 million families, considered as urban poor in the country. Most of these individuals are included in the 25 million Filipinos who live on P50 to P100 every day, and those most affected by illness,
unemployment, inflation, and calamities.
LENI UP commits to promoting agendas for the urban poor in the country and fight bribery against their sector in the upcoming elections by
conveying those greater opportunities await the people under a Robredo-Pangilinan administration.
LENI UP is composed of nearly a thousand urban poor groups nationwide. It is also set to meet with the senatorial candidates of the Leni-Kiko
ticket at the volunteer center.
“Primary kasi sa akin yung papaano natin ma-aachieve yung quality of life na dapat ine-enjoy ng mga lahat sa atin even ‘yung mga kagaya ninyo na baliktad ‘yung oras,” said Robredo.
“So ‘yung proposal talaga natin, dapat ‘yung pamahalaan nagpro-provide siya ng transportation na safe, na secure, gumagawa ng mga rota na sinu-suit doon sa mga oras sa paglabas sa trabaho. And ‘yung mga rotang ito, regulated by the government para siguradong ligtas,” she added.
The presidential aspirant recently met with members of volunteer groups composed of IT and BPO professionals to discuss her plans for the industry should she win the 2022 elections.
The virtual event was organized by the Robredo People’s Council (RPC) and hosted by the group IT & BPO Professionals for Leni via Zoom and streamed on the Facebook page of the group BPO Employees for Leni. Over 850 participants were in attendance.
Robredo acknowledged how the shifting nature of their schedules made BPO employees lose their much needed sleep when accessing government and medical services during daytime hours.
“Sinisiguro din natin na maraming services ang dapat available sa oras na puwede kayo. Meaning to say, nandoon … lalo na sa mga lugar na may conglomeration of BPO companies. Kailangan may available na services na paglabas ninyo sa opisina o bago kayo pumasok sa opisina, puwede niyo ‘yun ma-avail,” she said.
Addressing the fact that about 60 percent of employees in the BPO industry are working mothers, Robredo said companies must be mandated to provide daycare services, tutoring, and other ways to make their lives easier.
“Kung hindi man kaya ng opisina na magkaroon ng sariling daycare service, dapat ‘yung pamahalaan ay mag-provide … para lang
ma-encourage ‘yung mga nanay na puwede pa siyang magtrabaho kasi may mapapag-iiwanan siya ng anak niya,” Robredo said.
“Dapat ‘yung services na ‘yun available para nakakapagtrabaho tayo ng mapayapa … kasi may masasandigan tayo na mga services ng pamahalaan para sa pamilya natin.”