Capitol to give P20T aid to six repatriated OFWs

CEBU, Philippines - The Cebu provincial government is extending financial assistance to six Overseas Filipino Workers repatriated from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia after having been retrenched from work and stranded for eight months.

The Provincial Board yesterday passed a resolution granting P20,000 each to Leonardo Palen, 38, of Toledo City; Jecky Gulben, 30, of Tabogon; Jayson Cortes, 33, of Valencia, Bohol; Tristan Navaja, 33, and Rolito Casilan, 32, both of Labangon, Cebu City and Jesus Gonzales Jr., 43, of Macrohon, Leyte.

The resolution was sponsored by Board member Christopher Baricuatro.

“Although some of them are not residents of Cebu Province, it is highly recommended by the PSWDO (Provincial Social Welfare and Development Office) that they could avail of the financial assistance as a gesture of support to their families and to provide them with opportunities to engage in productive livelihood activities,” said Baricuatro.

Baricuatro pointed out that the Capitol through PSWDO aims to provide social services and better opportunities to the disadvantaged sectors of the society such as women, children, elderly, persons with disabilities and individuals in crisis situations, to include the OFWs who are victims of illegal recruitment. 

The beneficiaries, mostly vocational graduates with skills in Aluminum Installation, were formerly employed with ALUMCO L.L.C. and Saudi bin Laden Group of Companies.

 They were part of the estimated 10,000 OFWs that have been displaced and stranded in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Aside from the Capitol assistance, the six OFWs are also set to receive financial assistance from the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA).

 OWWA recently approved the Relief Assistance Program (RAP) which is also set to benefit those that have already been repatriated to the Philippines due to the same cause.

According to OWWA, this one-time grant is exclusively for affected OFWs, who are either staying in camps or are live-out in KSA or who have been repatriated to the Philippines but have not received their salaries and benefits from their companies.

Each qualified OFW who are still at the Saudi jobsite as well as those who have repatriated already shall receive P20,000 from OWWA  while their families shall get P6,000 each. —/FPL (FREEMAN)