MANILA, Aug. 16 – Labor and Employment Secretary Silvestre Bello III is set to return to Saudi Arabia on 15-19 August to bring home the more than 9,000 remaining stranded overseas Filipino workers (OFW) in the said country.
“The marching order of President (Rodrigo) Duterte is to bring all our OFWs back home. ASAP,” said Bello. Secretary Bello added that he already ordered the immediate repatriation of the remaining 9,000 OFWs stranded in various areas in Saudi Arabia.
Aside from DOLE, the other agencies which are included in the Saudi Arabia Special Mission are the Department of Health (DOH), Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), Public Attorney’s Office (PAO) and Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA).
Bello noted that there are some OFWs who have already returned to the country after the Saudi Arabian government decided to waive their penalties for their iqama or exit clearance.
He added that the remaining OFWs in Riyadh, Jeddah, and Al Khobar are those who are waiting for their monetary claims from their previous employers. However, Bello said that there are still OFWs who are hoping to transfer to other employers. (DOLE)