Around 1,887 Ilonggos working in Middle East countries profiled by the city and provincial governments of Iloilo through their respective Public Employment and Services Offices (PESOs) have claimed that they are “generally safe.”
Iloilo provincial PESO manager Cynthia Dario said that as of 1 p.m. on Tuesday, March hey have profiled the overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), who came from 41 out of the 43 local government units of the province, through the Task Force Bulig Ilonggo.
The OFWs were profiled through their relatives in the province, while others directly messaged PESO’s social media account.
“The numbers are increasing. So far, none have requested repatriation unless, of course, there is going to be mandatory repatriation,” she said.
Meanwhile, Iloilo City PESO manager Gab Umadhay said that as of 2 p.m. on Tuesday, they have accounted for 508 OFWs who are residents of the city.
Data showed that 17 of them are in Israel, 10 in Oman, 34 in Qatar, 147 in the United Arab Emirates, 60 in Bahrain, 57 in Kuwait, 179 in Saudi Arabia, and four in Jerusalem.
Umadhay said 441 are still for verification while 63 were profiled as safe; the data were provided by PESO’s partner recruitment agencies.
“Four OFWs have formally requested immediate repatriation due to emotional distress brought about by the current security situation. One of the OFWs had already filed a repatriation request prior to the bombing incident and is currently awaiting flight details from the Philippine Embassy,” Umadhay said.
Meanwhile, the Iloilo provincial field office of the Department of Information and Communications Technology has opened its doors to families of OFWs who wish to communicate with their relatives in the Middle East.
Free Wi-Fi and computers are available at the field office based in Passi City.PNA
