“The passing of Florencio Coronado and Tony Apolto, former president and vice president of the Manggagawang Kapit-Bisig (MKB) respectively, is a great loss to the Filipino community in Riyadh,” OFW Congress President Alex Bello told Arab News.
Coronado died on Friday morning at a local hospital due to cardiac arrest. He had been undergoing kidney dialysis for the last six years with the help of a Saudi foundation. Apolto died of a heart attack in the Philippines.
Bong Amora, OFW Congress secretary-general, also lamented “the loss of two selfless" community leaders. “Florencio was always there when the community needed help. Tony, on the other hand, was a good follower as well as a good leader,” he said.
Robert Ramos, president of the Samahan ng mga Manggagawang Filipino ng Al Babtain (SAMAFIL), also expressed sadness. “Their untimely death makes the heart sink. They were a tower of strength as far as helping the Filipino community is concerned. They were always around to lend a helping hand.”
Resty Sibug of the Philippine Society of Mechanical Engineers in the Central Region in Saudi Arabia (PSME-CRSA) expressed sadness too.
“It goes without saying that we, at the PSME-CRSA, are saddened by the passing of two erstwhile indefatigable community workers,” he said.
Angel Pantoja, former community leader in Riyadh who is now based in Manila, said in an email that he was greatly saddened by the loss of real community workers. “Vivian, Florencio's wife, called me to relay the message that he had passed away in Riyadh,” Pantoja wrote in an email.
Bello said when Coronado was still healthy, he was always around to help in community activities organized by the Philippine Embassy.
“He and his wife Vivian were indeed active in community activities. Vivian used to lead in singing the Philippine national anthem when the occasion called for it,” he said.
Apolto, on the other hand, died in his home province of Tarlac, north of Manila, where he was vacationing. “Early this year, he went home, but he had a heart attack before he could come back,” the OFW Congress president said.
Bello also called on all OFWs to renew their membership with the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) when the time is due to ensure that they could avail of benefits if needed.
“I am calling on all OFWs to make sure their OWWA membership is valid. The daughter of Coronado, Jeane C. Catipon, referred her father's case to the OWWA in Riyadh but it was found out that his membership had expired,” he said.
