Aid for OFWs trapped abroad sought
HOUSE Assistant Minority Leader and ACT-CIS party-list Rep. Niña Taduran called Monday the government to act swiftly on the plight of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who have been trapped abroad due to the extended ban on the entry of passengers coming from countries with high cases of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) Delta variant.
This after 4, 500 stranded OFWs from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) asked help from her party-list group.
“They are already losing a lot of money and they have nowhere to go. They are depressed and exasperated. Ang problem pa-rebook sila ng ng pa-rebook ng flight, at ang visa expired na. We need to bring them home to their families,” said Taduran.
“Mayroon namang COVID test at 7-day quarantine sa hotels sa OFWs, bakit hindi natin sila pauwiin? Masisigurong wala na silang dalang virus pag-uwi ng kanilang bahay kung naobserbahan na sa loob ng pitong araw sa quarantine facilities. Hindi ba, itong 17 na balikbayan na may Delta variant, natuklasan lang na may dala silang ganito nang ma-quarantine at ma-test sa accredited facilities? So why can’t we do this for the other OFWs who are coming from the banned countries?” Taduran asked.
Travelers who have been to UAE, India, Pakistan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Oman, United Arab Emirates are barred from entering the country until July 15 to prevent the entry of SARS COV-2 B.1.617 variant.
Labor Sec. Silvestre “Bebot” Bello III assured Taduran that there will be a mass repatriation of at least 300 OFWs starting July 10.
The party-list group champions the cause of the Filipino workers abroad through the joint efforts of Taduran, and Reps. Jocelyn Tulfo and Eric Yap.
