JEDDAH: Leaders of the Filipino community in Jeddah are urging the Philippine government to continue providing temporary shelter to stranded Filipino workers at the seaport Pilgrims’ City.
“That is the best solution we can see to end the problem of our stranded compatriots staying under the bridge in Kandara,” said Jauhari G. Usman, adviser to the KASAPI Congress, an advocacy group supporting Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs).
During a forum held here recently, community members discussed the implementation of a proposal submitted by KASAPI to Philippine Labor Secretary Marianito Roque during his last visit to Saudi Arabia. The forum was attended by various community organizations in Jeddah, including business executive Elsie Chua who offered her support to the Filipino community’s charitable efforts, especially in response to recent flooding in the Philippines.
One of the proposals is to implement a post-arrival orientation seminar as a follow-up to the already established pre-departure orientation for household workers.
This proposal is to give in-country orientation for the workers once they arrive to bolster advice provided back home. Under the proposal, all OFWs arriving in Saudi Arabia would report to the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) office to verify their work locations and review their contracts before they are cleared to their respective employers.
“We want the employers to register their workers in the OWWA office available in their area,” said Usman. “If that happens there will be an assurance that our workers, especially in the household sector, will get immediate assistance in case a problem arises.”
The meeting also focused on the problems of Filipinos living under Jeddah’s Kandara bridge, where workers of various nationalities come and camp waiting for immigration authorities to pick them up for deportation.
Abdullah San Pedro, a community leader, said the Philippine government must continue providing shelter to the stranded workers to prevent them from congregating in public places, such as the Kandara bridge and in front of the Philippine Consulate. “We must continue providing them a decent place to stay,” San Pedro said.
On Sept. 7 the Philippine Consulate said it provided shelter and food to almost 200 stranded Filipinos at the seaport Pilgrims’ City.
This was made possible through the efforts of Consul General Ezzedin Tago who obtained permission from the Makkah governorate and then entered into a contract with King Abdulaziz Endowment for Al-Ain Al-Aziziah, which runs the city.
The first group of stranded Filipinos placed at the shelter was later moved to the deportation center by police and are now awaiting repatriation.
