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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider Number of OFWs to be repatriated could exceed 100,000 —Duterte

Number of OFWs to be repatriated could exceed 100,000 —Duterte

Published Jun 22, 2020 12:00 am
By Argyll Geducos President Duterte said that the number of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) to be repatriated may breach the six-digit mark due to the COVID-19 pandemic. President Rodrigo Roa Duterte addresses the nation on the government's efforts against the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) at the Malago Clubhouse in Malacañang on April 16, 2020.( KARL NORMAN ALONZO/PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO/MANILA BULLETIN) President Rodrigo Roa Duterte (KARL NORMAN ALONZO/PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO/MANILA BULLETIN) In his 13th report to Congress, President Duterte said that cruise line companies have expressed that 29,963 more seafarers are expected to be sent home. The foreign service posts of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) likewise indicated that another 17,830 land-based OFWs have signified their intent to be repatriated. Barring any complications, Duterte said the two figures would bring the total number of repatriates to 93,675. "However, due to the continuing impact of the pandemic, the number of repatriated Filipinos could reach 100,000 or even higher in the coming months," the President said. Earlier, Malacañang said that all OFWs who are seeking repatriation will be able to go home. However, he said the government was having difficulty due to the number of countries that are still under lockdown. OFWs, for the meantime, were advised to go to the Philippines Overseas Labor Office or the Philippine Embassy in their host country. Presidential spokesman Harry Roque had taken exception to criticisms that the government has been treating repatriated OFWs like "garbage" and insisted that they were given VIP treatment. "Inuwi po natin lahat ng manggagawa natin. Binigyan namin ng libreng PCR testing, binigyan natin ng libreng pamasahe sa eroplano, sa bus, at sa barko (We're bringing home all our workers and we give them free PCR testing and we shoulder their ride home)," Roque said late May. "Hindi po 'yan garbage-like treatment. VIP treatment po 'yan (That's not garbage-like treatment. That is VIP treatment)," he added. Migrante International earlier condemned the government for its "ineptitude" in handling the exodus of OFWs returning from abroad and who need to undergo quarantine as a measure against COVID-19. The complaints from OFWs prompted Duterte early this week to order the government to expedite the return of OFWs to their hometowns but the hasty implementation led local chief executives like Ormoc City Mayor Richard Gomez to hit the lack of coordination by the national government. The Inter-agency Task Force (IATF) for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases has long prohibited LGUs from disallowing OFWs cleared of the virus to return to their hometowns.
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