MALOLOS CITY—Laws authored by the late statesman Blas F. Ople are copied and replicated abroad, his son said as Bulacan marked his 87th birthday yesterday.
This, even as local officials here once again lauded Ople for his contributions to the country, especially on the economy through overseas employment that directly benefited millions. Bulacan Board Member Felix Ople, son of the late statesman, disclosed yesterday that the Philippine Labor Code which was authored by his father was copied by countries like Malaysia and Indonesia.
He also said that that Overseas Employment Act which was also authored by the former Senate President has been replicated in India and Pakistan as both countries now have increasing numbers of overseas workers.
“I was only told recently by Dean Froilan Bacungan,” the young Ople said referring to the leading labor lawyer who is also a friend of his father. He said that Bacungan informed him that he was hired as consultant by the Malaysian and Indonesian governments in coming up with their own version of the Labor Code in an attempt to protect their own workers.
In an earlier interview, Bacungan said that the Philippine Labor Code has remained basically intact since it was signed into law by the late President Ferdinand Marcos in 1974. He also described the Philippine Labor Code as one of the most influential Filipino laws because it is being followed by foreign governments where Filipino workers are working.
Bacungan also expressed admiration not only to the law but to its author noting that Ople wasn’t even a lawyer when he penned the Code. According to Board Member Ople, the Philippine Labor Code is one of the greatest contributions of his father to the country as it opened the doors for Filipinos to work abroad since the mid-70s.
He said that for years, remittances of millions of overseas Filipino workers kept the country’s economy afloat despite economic challenges. The same was echoed by Gov. Wilhelmino Alvarado and Vice Gov. Daniel Fernando in their separate remarks yesterday.
Both cited the former statesman for making a difference to lives of millions of Filipino’s through the years. A son of peasants, the former Senate President was born in Hagonoy town on February 3,1927 and died while on his way to a diplomatic mission to Bahrain on December 14, 2003 as Secretary of Foreign Affairs.
Ople’s life was marked by struggles and perseverance. As a young boy, he walked barefoot from his home just to attend his classes at the Hagonoy Central School where he graduated valedictorian.
World War II forced him to take arms and joined the Del Pilar Regiment of the Bulacan Military Area. The said regiment was responsible in the surrender of Japanese Imperial Army General Tomoyuki Yamashita in Kiangan, Mountain Province in 1945.
After the war, Ople worked in the docks of Manila and was exposed to “cabo system” which he vowed to end one day. This was followed by his career in journalism and later in politics. Ople openly admitted that he did not finish college and considered himself “largely self-taught.”
