House Deputy Majority Leader Erwin Tulfo has unveiled a cash assistance program offering P150,000 for each overseas Filipino worker (OFW) repatriating from Lebanon amid the ongoing conflict.
Tulfo disclosed the initiative after meeting with officials from the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA). He emphasized the importance of keeping Congress updated on efforts to bring Filipinos back home, as stressed by OWWA Administrator Arnel Ignacio.
Ignacio revealed that around 100,000 Filipinos remain in Lebanon. OWWA, in collaboration with the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW), has assured the public that they are fully prepared and have enough funds to manage the repatriation process.
OFWs have been encouraged to return temporarily for their safety while the conflict persists. Tulfo also shared that Congress is monitoring situations not only in Lebanon but in other conflict zones like Israel and Iran. Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez has directed the Appropriations Committee to allocate additional funds if needed for repatriation efforts across the region.
