DAVAO CITY, 1 October — Despite the lack of facilities to evacuate Overseas Filipino Workers(OFWs) from the Middle East in case there’s a need to do so, they are re-assured by the government to be rescued.
In a televised interview yesterday, Overseas Workers Welfare Adminstration (OWWA) chief Wilhelm Soriano reiterated the assurance of the government that help is ready for OFWs they need to be evacuated.
“We have enough funds by the millions to assist them,” said Soriano when interviewed live by GMA Channel 7 this afternoon.
The government is going to provide an additional P250 million in case the OWWA funds run out, he added.
Observers said the government is currently engaged in a “damage control” mode after scaring the dependents of OFWs by announcing that Filipinos who are in the Middle East may be at risk.
The Philippine Embassy in Riyadh had earlier issued an appeal for calm not only Filipinos in the Kingdom but also to those at home.
But a recent advisory of the Department of Foreign Affairs listing the eastern part of Saudi Arabia as among the risky places for Filipinos is said to have angered some Saudis, according to OFWs based in the Kingdom.
A number of OFWs told Arab News that they were being taken to task by their Saudi employers or colleagues for the overreaction of officials and the media in the Philippines, in which Saudi Arabia was being projected as a dangerous place.
It was not clear how the DFA have come to the conclusion that eastern Saudi Arabia, where there are about 72,000 Filipino workers and dependents, was a risk area.
OFWs who were angered by the DFA report said it was “hypocritical” for the Philippines to come up with such a label when it is quick to protest whenever Mindanao or any other part of the country is listed by other nations as a dangerous place to visit.
Another incident that reportedly angered Saudis was the detention by Philippine immigration officials of a Saudi Airlines pilot just because he had the same surname as that of a suspect in the US terror attacks.
Philippine officials have said the pilot was just “invited” for questioning but the Saudis have seen on television the innocent man being taken away like a convicted criminal.
Other OFWs have wondered why the Filipino community organizations in the Kingdom have been silent about the saber-rattling in Manila that may put those in the Middle East at risk.
Even as Philippine politicians and media worried over the fate of Filipinos in the Middle East, Labor Secretary Patricia Sto. Tomas had said Saudi Arabia remains the top destination for Filipino jobseekers.
The Philippine Embassy had also reported to Manila that even if free flights are offered to OFWs in the unlikely event that an evacuation is necessary, most of them may opt not to leave.
