There is definitely advancement in the ranks of the overseas Filipino workers as proven by one Pinoy who started out as a mere cargo handler and is now owner of sea and air cargo firm Filipino Express in Saudi Arabia.
ABS-CBN Middle East News Bureau’s Andy Relox reported on the life of Jessie Fuerte who handled cargo in a firm in Batha when he first arrived in the Kingdom before the turn of the century.
Because of his experience, Jessie felt qualified to put up FilExpress Cargo in 2000 and his company now has three branches within Saudi Arabia.
After working for another firm in Batha, Riyadh, Jessie thought of buying his own visa and of looking for an investor in a firm that would cater solely to the hundreds of overseas Filipinos in Saudi Arabia.
"Naisipan kong cargo dahil dati namamasukan lang din ako sa isang agency sa Riyadh, at nagkaroon ng chance at least di na ako mamasukan, mayroon na akong 3 branch sa Al Khobar, sa Hofuf at Central (I thought of cargo because I used to work for an agency in Riyadh, I got the chance so now I am no longer an employee. I have three branches in Al Khobar, Hofuf and Central)," Jessie said.
Jessie runs his own business and even accompanies container vans getting cargo at remote sites together with other members of his family also in his cargo company.
He takes care of his customers and when last year one of his warehouses was hit by fire, he conscientiously paid off the owners of all the cargo that was burned.
"Syempre obligasyon natin na bayaraan sa nagpadala dahil yun ay kontrata naka-insured bagahe n’yo oras na naresibuhan ng FilExpress (That’s my obligation to pay for the burned cargo because those are insured from the moment the owner signs a contract with FilExpress)," Jessie said.
His business is picking up little by little, he said, but he is still striving to earn more and achieve more for his family in Bicol.
"Ang sikreto dito sa ganito, umpisa lang sa maliit una pagkapwa tao, OFW at tunay na pakikitungo bilang isang tao - at Pilipino! (The secret here is starting small and treating your fellow men and other OFWs as men, and as Filipinos)," Jesse said.
Now he is hoping to open even more branches.
Jessie said "baka sa sunod na buwan o taon ay makapag dagdag pa ng branches sa Jeddah, Khamis Mushayt, etc. (Maybe next month or even next year, I will be opening branches in Jeddah, Khamis Mushayt and etc.)
abs-cbnnews.com
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Topic: Pinoy Goes from Stevedore to Cargo Freight Firm Owner (Read 998 times)