SCOT confirmed that it had contacted the family of 53-year-old Edwin Rubinos Panistante, requesting that his vital organs be donated.
After an intensive examination, it was found out that there was blood accumulating in a vein in his brain, rendering him comatose for several days.
"SCOT informed us that it had contacted the family of Panistante to help patients who might need his organs," Vice Consul Roussel T. Reyes, who is in charge of the assistance to nationals section at the embassy, told Arab News on Tuesday.
SCOT contacted Panistante's wife, 52-year-old Angelina M. Panistante from Rizal, south of Manila, asking for her consent, which she agreed to.
In return for the consent, the Saudi Ministry of Health will shoulder the cost of transporting the coffin carrying Panistante's remains as well as a plane ticket to Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) in Manila.
"Also, the surviving family members of the deceased will be eligible for a charity payment of SR50,000 within three months. These benefits are applicable only if the retrieval of his organs is performed," Abdullah Al Enazi, SCOT administrative coordinator, said in a letter to Panistante's wife.
Arab News learned about the donation from human rights group Migrante’s Middle East coordinator John Leonard Monterona, who said the embassy was also kept in the loop.
Panistante was rushed Dec. 4 to Abanamy Hospital where he was pronounced brain dead. When consent for organ donation had been granted, he was transferred to another hospital where the organs were removed. His family was informed on Dec. 3 that he was in a critical condition.
Embassy records showed that Panistante was planning to go home on an exit visa about eight months ago, but decided to stay and work for another company because of his four kids' education. His children are Ednel, 27; Marian Joy Panistante-Baltazar, 25; Jason, 19; and Angelwyn, 14.
He was recruited in Manila by Al Jazira Manpower Services. On learning of the death of her brother, Dubai-based Rosario Panistante called Migrante on Dec. 7 to seek its help in the repatriation of her brother's body.
On behalf of Migrante, Monterona said: "I salute Panistante, who had been in Saudi Arabia for more than seven years, for his love and unselfishness for his family like other Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) who are willing to sacrifice for their children."
He also lauded the family for its humanitarian gesture of donating Panistante's organs.
"We are urging the Philippine Embassy to facilitate the immediate repatriation of Panistante's remains. We are also calling on concerned Philippine government agencies to provide financial assistance to the family," Monterona told Arab News.
