Labor attache in Riyadh faces corruption, sexual harassment complaints

A Filipino welfare officer for a Saudi Arabian recruitment agency and his wife have filed a complaint for alleged corruption and sexual harassment against a labor attache in Riyadh.

In a complaint-affidavit filed at the Philippine Embassy in Riyadh on October 14, Herbert Mayores claimed that Nasser Mustafa of the Philippine Overseas Labor Office asked for bribes from agencies and harassed his wife

Mayores alleged that Mustafa was asking money from recruitment agencies under his jurisdiction by affixing a “See Me” note on the documents that required his approval.

“This ‘see me’ has also been implemented in his post before in POLO Jeddah and in the POLO ERO (Eastern Province Office) region,” Mayores said in his affidavit.

Mayores said some of the accredited Saudi-based recruitment agencies he worked for “gave” Mustafa a total of around US$ 7,000 under this scheme.

“If you want your documents fast, you have to make this… It’s an ongoing graft,” Mayores told GMA News Online.

Sought for comment, Mustafa said that he had already submitted a counter-affidavit to the Department of Labor and Employment’s International Labor Affairs Bureau (DOLE-ILAB). He advised that the same document be requested from the said office.

DOLE-ILAB has yet to respond to the request of GMA News Online as of posting time.

Mayores said the labor attache sexually harassed his wife Aireen in exchange for documents that needed his signature.

She is also a recruitment agency representative in Saudi Arabia.

The incident happened last February 13, 2020 at the POLO-Riyadh, according to Aireen.

Mayores said he was in Manila, processing some documents, when that harassment was committed against his wife.

He urged the Philippine government authorities to suspend and recall Mustafa pending the investigation on these complaints.

As a consequence of filing a complaint, Mayores and his wife said they were placed on floating status in the recruitment agencies they work for and had recently received threats of being “hunted.”

“We’re doing this not for us. We will die for a good cause. Maraming marami po talaga, the embassy can attest marami talagang nagrereklamo sa kaniya kaso wala talagang naglalakas ng loob,” Mayores said, adding that they were also seeking the assistance of the Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission.

Source: https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/pinoyabroad/news/761833/labor-attache-faces-corruption-sexual-harassment-complaint-in-riyadh/story/