The group shot with Ambassador Alfonso Ferdinand Ver of the Philippine Embassy in Abu Dhabi and Consul General Marford Angeles of the Philippine Consulate General (PCG) in Dubai was taken last night, September 22.
Ambassador Ver or Amba Doy invited me to the Una Bulaqueña: A Gala of History and Beauty in celebration of the historic installation of Juan Luna’s Una Bulaqueña, a Philippine National Cultural Treasure at the Louvre Abu Dhabi, Saadiyat Island, Abu Dhabi. The two ladies with us are Pinas Group of Companies founder and CEO Marlyn Castro and HR and Marketing Manager Rumelyn Aribon. There were many foreign diplomats and guests, too.
This other group shot with ConGen Ford shows the PCG’s vice consuls Aleah Marie Gica, Paola Belle Ebora and Kenneth Jim Joseph Jimeno, and Philippine Trade Commissioner Vichael Angelo Roaring.
They belong to the Philippine Diplomatic Missions which is described in this link – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_diplomatic_missions_of_the_Philippines:
“The Republic of the Philippines has a network of diplomatic missions in major cities around the world, under the purview of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), to forward the country’s interests in the areas that they serve, as well as to serve the ever-growing numbers of Overseas Filipinos and Overseas Filipino Workers.
Although the Philippine diplomatic mission network is wide, there are embassies that are accredited to other nations without Philippine diplomatic posts. The network as of May 2025 consists of 67 embassies, 28 consulates-general, four permanent missions to international organizations, and the Manila Economic and Cultural Office (MECO) in Taipei, and its two extension offices.”
Let’s extend our support to these public servants as they are really looking after us in the UAE. One commendable and unusual incident I witnessed was on August 3, a Sunday, where around 1pm inside Hall No. 8 of the Dubai World Trade Center, I saw both Amba Doy and ConGen Ford, with Labor Attache Atty. John Rio Bautista, of the Migrant Workers Office, carrying and fixing chairs to accommodate the hundreds of people who wanted to avail of the Bagong Bayani ng Mundo: OFW Serbisyo Caravan.
I messaged both the next day: “I salute you Amba Doy and ConGen Ford for carrying the chairs yesterday. Love live the public servants.”
In our community CFC, leaders also carry and fix chairs whenever there are prayer assemblies. There is no hierarchy when it comes to manual labor. For a top diplomat like an ambassador and consul general, carrying and fixing chairs in a public event show their humility to be able to serve the people well.
The chaotic event was initiated by the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) which offered one-stop shop of Philippine government services to Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) in the UAE such as SSS, Pag-IBIG and PhilHealth and even free legal consultation, assistance, and counseling from the Public Attorney’s Office (PAO).
Amba Doy’s reply: ”Carrying of the chairs was the easiest part – the thing that is not known and which I don’t post about is that I faced the crowd outside told them that ‘I am the Ambassador, and I take responsibility and take full charge. If we help each other, I will fix this’ and we did and the queue started moving, people were quieted, and I went up the stage at around 5 pm to say that there are no more people outside and we were seating them inside.”
According to a DMW press release, the initiative successfully delivered a total of 11,569 government transactions to 5,928 OFWs in a single day, despite the many challenges faced during the event.
Top service highlights include over 4,600 transactions on OWWA membership renewals, e-Card issuance, and welfare assistance; 2,700 for SSS account verification, pension support, and new member registration; 1,353 employment contract verification and assistance to distressed OFWs by the DMW-MWO; 1,000 PhilHealth IDs printed including member registration, and updating of records; and 741 PSA and PhilSys transactions such as national ID registration and issuance of civil registry documents.
“We sincerely apologize for the long queues and the discomfort experienced by our kababayans during the Serbisyo Caravan. While we are grateful for the huge turnout, we recognize the need for stronger planning and coordination moving forward,” said DMW Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac.
As for the other extra mile things you are doing like going around and supporting small and medium enterprises, well done Amba Doy, ConGen Ford, and Philippine Diplomatic Team in the UAE. Mabuhay!
Note: The columnist is a 24-year resident of Dubai and is currently working as Head of Corporate Communications of a global energy logistics company. He used to be a former Filipino Community Leader as chairman of the Philippine Independence Day Execom in 2008 and as one of the founding officers of the Filipino Social Club in 2019. He can be reached at: artlosbanos@gmail.com
