Senator Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go, chairman of the Senate Health and Demography Committee, commended on Wednesday concerned government agencies for laying down necessary health and safety protocols for returning Overseas Filipino Workers (OFW) in an effort to prevent the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

Go also appealed to the returning OFWs to bear with and strictly follow current guidelines when arriving in the country as the government is determined to assist them in safely reuniting with their families amid the ongoing global pandemic.

The health and safety protocols were laid down by the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID).

“Sa ating mga kababayang Pilipino na uuwi ng Pilipinas, may mga nilatag na health and safety protocols ang ating gobyerno upang protektahan po kayo at ang inyong mga pamilya. Sundin natin ito para masiguro nating magiging ligtas din ang mga mahal ninyo sa buhay sa inyong pag-uwi,’’ he said. (To our fellow Filipinos returning to the Philippines, the government has laid down health and safety protocols for your protection and your families. Let’s follow them to ensure that you and your loved ones are safe upon your return.)

 “Sa anumang mga hakbang na gagawin ng gobyerno at pati ng mga ordinaryong mamamayan, palagi nating unahin ang buhay at kapakanan ng kapwa nating Pilipino,’’ he added. (In any steps that the government and the ordinary citizens will undertake, let’s always prioritize the lives and welfare of our fellow Filipinos.)

The IATF, Philippine Red Cross (PRC), and Department of Health (DOH) have recently released a step-by-step procedure of the processes being implemented at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) for Filipinos arriving in the country.

There are eight steps returnees must follow upon arrival. First, they are required to register online by filling out a form and upload their passport’s bio page. They will then be given a Quick Response (QR) code through a confirmation emailwhich must be saved on their phones and printed to be presented upon arrival in the country along with the passport.

A briefing will then be given to returning Filipinos to discuss other health and safety protocols in place before they can go home. After which, they will proceed to the verification counter to process pertinent documents. A short interview will also be conducted to check on their travel records and health status.

Each person will be given  six barcode stickers---one will be affixed at the back of their passport while the rest will be given to the person who will perform the swab testing in the designated swabbing booth.

After testing, they will proceed to immigration and follow the usual process. Once they get through immigration, they  need to go to their respective help desks for their quarantine facility assignment. 

Specifically, OFWs will proceed to the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) desk, seafarers to their local manning agency, if any, and non-OFW returning Filipinos to the Department of Tourism (DOT) desk. The returning Filipinos will have to stay for a few days in the partner hotels designated as quarantine facilities while waiting for their COVID-19 swab test results.

Within 72 hours, the IATF assured that each returning Filipino will receive a message indicating results of their tests.

If negative, the government will release a medical certificate for them to be cleared to go home.

If they test positive, health personnel will assist them in getting medical attention.  In the meantime, there is also a 24-hour helpline and desk in all hotels designated as quarantine facilities.

The senator from Davao also lauded the OWWA, DOT and their partner-hotels for providing quarantine facilities to host returning Filipinos.

Go also thanked the different local manning agencies for OFWs, and the administration and staff of NAIA for their efforts in helping Filipinos come home safely amid the threat of COVID-19.

He said it is important to make sure that proper health and safety protocols are in place in order to avoid the spread of COVID-19.

Proper coordination must also be conducted to make sure that receiving local government units are willing and ready to accept their constituents before they return home to their provinces, he said.

Go filed in July  last year Senate Bill (SB) 202,  the Department of Overseas Filipinos Act of 2019, which seeks to address perennial issues, such as the need to improve coordination among concerned offices and put them together under one department to avoid finger-pointing among agencies concerned with overseas Filipinos and OFW affairs.