The Commission on Audit (COA) has revealed that thousands of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) inappropriately availed themselves of the free flight services provided by the Philippine government during the COVID-19 crisis.
According to a recent COA report, 3,707 OFWs benefited from emergency repatriation more than once between April 2020 and May 2023.
These OFWs not only enjoyed free flights but also availed free lodging and food.
State auditors raised concerns, suggesting that these OFWs took advantage of the repatriation program upon the expiration of their contracts, even when they were not in distress.
COA believes that this practice might have deprived other OFWs who genuinely required emergency repatriation.
“Using funds for expenses that should have been borne by these OFWs during their regular trips back home contributed to the depletion of scarce government resources,” COA stated.
Interestingly, most of the repeated repatriations involved OFWs from Northern Mindanao. Responding to the findings, the OWWA regional office in Northern Mindanao assured that they would collaborate with their main office to better scrutinize the beneficiaries in the future.