Año orders creation of OFW desks

May 1, 2020

Interior Secretary Eduardo Año on Friday ordered the creation of OFW desks to assist returning repatriates amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) threat.

Based on DILG Memorandum Circular No. 2020-075, Año directed all regional directors and the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) Minister of Local Government to designate the Local Government Operations Officer of DILG city and municipal field offices to be the DILG OFW desk officer of the concerned component cities and municipalities.

Año said the creation of help desks in all its regional offices is to facilitate the return of OFWs affected by the pandemic crisis.

“We have been receiving reports that some OFWs are being barred from entering their communities or otherwise prevented to go to their designated health facilities to undergo their mandatory 14-day quarantine,” he said.

Año said the task of the designated DILG OFW desk officer is to immediately coordinate with the local chief executive concerned and provide the relevant information about the arriving OFWs. They must ensure that local government units (LGUs), including the BARMM, provide all the necessary assistance to the OFWs, he added.

The OFW desk officer shall also monitor the health status of all Filipino repatriates within their respective jurisdictions through the city or municipal health workers, barangay health workers, or members of the Barangay Health Emergency Response Teams.

“Miscommunication and misinformation should both be out of the question. That’s why the department will have OFW desk in regional offices and will designate desk officers per region, municipality and cities. Let’s help the OFWs returned to their homes after their required quarantine period,” he added.

Año said that the creation of the DILG OFW desks is in line with Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Infectious Diseases (IATF-MEID)’s Resolution No. 14 that enjoins the accommodation of distressed OFWs.

With many LGUs moving on May 1 from enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) to general community quarantine (GCQ) for being low-risk areas, Año addressed the likelihood that many OFWs will want to return to their provinces.

Año reminded repatriates coming home they must undergo the isolation process in quarantine facilities first.

He recently said that at least 8,000 OFWs have returned to the country which were all subjected to the mandatory 14-day quarantine. Ella Dionisio/DMS