Ahead of the holiday and Christmas season, overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in the UAE are reminded to send balikbayan boxes to their families in the Philippines through legitimate cargo companies only.
Commercial attache for Middle East and Africa, Charmaine Mignon Yalong, explained that many Filipinos send balikbayan boxes one to two months before Christmas to give cargo companies time to ship the boxes to their respective destinations in the Philippines, reported Gulf News.
Amid this surge in shipping of balikbayan boxes from UAE to the Philippines, Yalong reminded OFWs to check the list of Filipino accredited cargo companies and their foreign counterparts, if any, to avoid facing any problems concerning their packages.
“We always warn the public that these are your love boxes. These boxes contain items that you bought with your hard-earned money. The last hurdle is really getting them to your families,” Yalong said.
Earlier, various freight forwarding companies transporting balikbayan boxes from the UAE to Philippines sought to establish an organization that would protect consumers against ‘fly-by-night’ operations of other companies not accredited by the Department of Trade and Industry-Trade Enforcement Bureau (DTI-FTEB).
The organization would gather accredited Filipino freight forwarding companies to protect consumers from ‘fly-by-night operators.’
The organization would operate under the Philippine Business Council-Dubai and the Northern Emirates (PBCDNE), which is recognized by the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
An estimated 10,000 balikbayan boxes are being shipped by these companies from the UAE to the Philippines daily.
