19 February 2019 – Philippine Ambassador to Malaysia Charles C. Jose hosted a dinner and get-together with Filipino organizations on 17 February 2019 at Kota Kinabalu, Sabah to foster closer ties with the community.

In attendance were leaders and officers representing the following organizations: Kota Kinabalu Filipino Community (KKFC), Sacred Heart Cathedral Filipino Community (SHCFC), Sandakan Filipino Community (SAFICO), Pinoy Association Labuan Malaysia (PALM), Sabah Filipino Christian Association (SAFCAM), Lahing Filipino Community (LFC), and Alternative Learning Center LTRC Penampang.

In his welcome remarks, Ambassador Jose thanked the Filipino community for their assistance to the Embassy’s programs in Sabah, Sarawak, and Labuan.  “It’s harder to do things when there is literally a sea between us.  It takes close collaboration and extra effort.  All of us, coming together here, is a demonstration of that close collaboration and extra effort,” he said, noting that many community leaders traveled all the way from Sandakan, Labuan, and other remote locations to attend the get-together, while the Embassy team came all the way from Kuala Lumpur.

Ambassador Jose also took the opportunity to update the community leaders on the improvements implemented by the Embassy in its services to Filipinos in Sabah, including increasing the frequency of consular missions across the region, securing an additional data capturing machine, increasing the frequency of detention center visits and travel document issuances, deepening relationships with local officials, and securing funding for Alternative Learning Centers in 2018. 

“Kahit malayo ang Embassy, nandito kami para sa inyo,” the Ambassador emphasized.  “We work tirelessly to overcome substantial physical distance, legal limitations, and resource constraints to bring services and assistance, made possible through the valuable help of the Filipino community.”

The get-together was followed by a town-hall style exchange of ideas over dinner.

For more information, visit the Embassy’s website at http://www.philembassykl.org.my or its official Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/PHinMalaysia/.