Labor Attaché Cesar Chavez Jr. of the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW)-Taipei Migrant Workers Office (MWO) has appealed to the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to allow exemptions for job fair expenditures during the election period’s spending ban.

This plea follows the announcement of over 5,000 job vacancies in Taiwan available for Filipino workers, aimed at expediting the recruitment process. 

During the Saturday News Forum in Quezon City, Chavez emphasized that halting job fairs both locally and overseas would deprive many Filipinos of employment opportunities.

Recently, the DMW and the Manila Economic and Cultural Office (MECO), hosted job fairs in Quezon City, Cabanatuan City, Nueva Ecija and San Jose del Monte City, Bulacan. The fairs focused on job opportunities in the semiconductor and e-chip production sectors.

Chavez stated that to date, approximately 2,000 individuals have nearly completed their hiring process and are undergoing further evaluations. An additional 3,000 job vacancies are being prioritized for filling. 

The election period for the midterm polls will begin on Sunday, 12 January. 

Section 261 (v) of the Omnibus Election Code calls for the prohibition against release, disbursement, or expenditure of public funds 45 days before a regular election and 30 days before a special election.