Regional task force mulls halt to OFW repatriations

By Joseph B.A. Marzan

Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) from Panay and Guimaras will have to wait a little longer before they can finally return to their families as the Western Visayas Regional Task Force on COVID-19 (WVRTF) is considering the suspension of their repatriation.

WVRTF spokesperson Atty. Roy Villa clarified on Thursday that there is no official pronouncement yet on the matter after nine OFWs from Iloilo City and Guimaras initially yielded positive results for the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) using the rapid antibody testing.

They were part of the 175 OFWs who arrived at the Port of Iloilo Wednesday morning.

The WVRTF was still meeting Thursday afternoon to discuss the suspension.

He added that they are also waiting for the results of the confirmatory testing on the OFWs using the Reverse Transcription-Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) test kits which are more reliable.

“The [WVRTF] has no official pronouncement with respect to [the suspension of repatriation] because these rapid test results had only been released just earlier. We will be meeting this afternoon (Thursday), although we are still waiting for the RT-PCR results which are more reliable but then we would have to wait three days for their results. What we can do right now is to decide on our stance and figure out how we will act on the next batches [of OFWs] but then again, we have not released any official statement,” he said.

Villa likewise also denied his earlier statements in a radio interview that the repatriation process in Metro Manila was “problematic.”

He said that the WVRTF will also decide on the steps to take in the process of repatriation.

“Although we already see what needs to be changed with the process [of repatriation], we still have to meet on this so we can be properly guided. We are still going to get the opinions of all other concerned agencies, and members of the [WVRTF],” he said.