MANILA— A total of 142 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) from Abu Dhabi who availed themselves of the amnesty program of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) arrived home on Friday, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said.
The 8th and latest batch of arrivals brings to 980 the total of Filipino repatriates from the UAE since the amnesty program began last month.
Ambassador to UAE Hjayceelyn Quintana said the DFA, through the Office of Migrant Workers Affairs, shouldered the exit fines and other penalties, airline tickets to Manila and to the respective provinces of the repatriates.
“The DFA also provided financial assistance of PHP5,000 to each of the repatriate as part of the government’s ‘all-out support’ for the returning OFWs,” Quintana added.
The agency continues to encourage qualified Filipinos to take advantage of the UAE’s amnesty program before the Oct. 31, 2018 deadline, to give the embassy and the consulate general ample time to process the necessary documents for their repatriation.
Quintana assured undocumented Filipinos in the UAE that the embassy in Abu Dhabi and consulate general in Dubai are ready to assist all those who wish to return to the Philippines under this program. (Joyce Ann L. Rocamora/PNA)
