United Filipinos in Hong Kong (Unifil-Migrante-HK) once again called for justice in behalf of the victims of illegal recruitment and trafficking in Hong Kong by Prisca Nina Mabatid, former Cebu City councilor and chief executive of PCVC Opportunities Abroad, Pinoy Care Visa Center, and PCVC-Opportunities Abroad.

They are holding accountable the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) and the Marcos administration for their neglect and lack of action regarding Mabatid’s victims.

“The case of illegal recruitment and trafficking of Nina Mabatid’s victims here in Hong Kong is nearly two years this July, but injustice remains,” the group’s chairperson Dolores Balladares said. She said the victims have repeatedly spoken to Consulate representatives who kept referring them back to the Philippines.

Department of Migrant Workers head Secretary Hans Cacdac concurs that the complainants are victims of illegal recruitment and trafficking. However, Mabatid remains at large despite an arrest warrant issued against her. Worse, she even managed to run for councilor in Cebu City in the last election. The victims also received no financial assistance from the DMW’s AKSYON fund.

Recall that Mabatid recruited migrants in Hong Kong from 2017 to 2023 to apply for student visas to work in Canada. Mabatid promised that her company would process the papers in only three months. She promised that migrants who sought her help would immediately get jobs to cover their tuition and living expenses in Canada.

Mabatid charged each victim ₱100,000 and made them sign an agreement stating that the payments made to the company were non-refundable. Mabatid deceived no fewer than 20 people.

Mabatid and her accomplices Russ Mark Gamallo, Bryan Calaguim, and three others were convicted of four counts of syndicated illegal recruitment and estafa in 2024. The Department of Justice upheld the verdict against them on May 5.

Unifil-Migrante-HK is concerned that the victims’ years of struggle will be voided. They said that Assistant Labor Attaché Tony Villafuerte’s office informed the victims that their complaint was downgraded from trafficking to fraud.

“Why is this happening? Whose side is our government on? This is clearly neglect! It is clear that the government favors the greedy and illegal recruiters like Mabatid. The government is only fit at collecting additional fees from OFWs, but is blind and deaf to cases of illegal recruitment and human trafficking,” the group said.

“The victims’ call for justice must not be disregarded. We will not stop until Mabatid and her accomplices are imprisoned. Our protest continues inside and outside the country,” Balladares added.

Unifil-Migrante-HK also promised to continue calling for full justice, including indemnification for the scam’s victims and the perpetrators’ imprisonment.