Eight Bulacan residents repatriated from the Middle East arrived at Villamor Air Base in Pasay City on Monday, where the provincial government arranged their transport to the capitol and handed each a PHP10,000 cash aid package, two cavans of rice, food packs, and boxes of fruits.
The eight were among 343 OFWs who flew back to the Philippines aboard the fourth government-chartered repatriation flight, which brought workers home from Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Saudi Arabia. President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. was on hand to receive them. A number of the returning workers had endured extended land travel before boarding their flights, a consequence of airspace restrictions across the region.
Among the repatriates was Ana, who arrived from Kuwait. She credited the Philippine Embassy there, the Department of Migrant Workers, and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration for getting her and her companions out safely. The overland leg of the journey, she said, was deeply uncertain.
“During the long journey we took by land, we didn’t know what would happen to us. Thank you also, Governor, for the financial assistance. This is a big thing for us as we return to the Philippines; this is a big help for us,” she said in a PNA report.
Governor Daniel Fernando greeted the group at the capitol and framed their homecoming as a shared responsibility between the province and the workers themselves.
“Welcome back, our beloved Bulakenyos. Let’s think now about how we will work together and help each other while you are here,” Fernando said.
With the situation abroad still unsettled, the governor pointed to the province’s monthly job fairs as a near-term option, saying the program could help match the returning workers with local employment suited to their backgrounds.
The eight OFWs came from four localities: the City of San Jose del Monte, Paombong, Norzagaray, and Bocaue. Their transport from Villamor to the capitol was coordinated by the provincial Public Employment Service Office.
