The Courage of Toots
The nation lost an outstanding public servant last week. Susan “Toots” Ople, champion of Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs), Migrant Workers Secretary, protector of workers’ rights and friend to us all, passed away to join the Lord and her father, Ka Blas Ople, in heaven. It was a sad day because Toots had so much more to give in terms of public service. In many of our conversations, she had passionately outlined her plans to help the plight of Filipino migrant workers and more importantly, reduce the country’s dependence of labor export.