Duterte appoints ex-adviser Abdullah Mama-o as head of Department of Migrant Workers

President Rodrigo Duterte has appointed Abdullah Mama-o, his former adviser on OFW and Muslim concerns, as the ad interim secretary of the newly created Department of Migrant Workers.

Mama-o's appointment letter was transmitted to the Commission on Appointments on March 4, 2022, by Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea.

"Pursuant to the provisions of Section 16, Article VII of the 1987 Constitution and existing laws, I am pleased to transmit the appointment letter of Mr. Abdullah Derupong Mama-o, signed by President Rodrigo Duterte, as ad interim secretary, Department of Migrant Workers," Medialdea said in his letter.

The Department of Migrant Workers, which aims to improve coordination among agencies concerned with overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and OFW affairs, is created through Republic Act 11641 that Duterte signed in December 2021.

The creation and establishment of the Department of Migrant Workers is one of Duterte’s priorities after he certified it as an urgent bill in March. —KBK, GMA News