Bishop calls for immediate repatriation of Pinoys in Jeddah

A Catholic bishop on Tuesday called on the Aquino administration to facilitate the repatriation of the thousands of stranded Filipinos who have camped out beside the Philippine Consultate building in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Maasin bishop Precioso Cantillas, Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines-Episcopal Commission on Migrant and Itinerant People chairman, said the Philippine government should immediately address the condition of the stranded Filipinos.

The bishop said that working Filipinos abroad are considered as "modern day heroes" as they bring billions of pesos in remittances to the country which the government should repay by looking after their welfare.

The prelate said it is the obligation of the government to process and iron out issues or concerns regarding the Filipino workers' travel documents or papers.

"Siyempre nangangailangan sila ng tulong mula sa ating pamahalaan kasi iyon nga sabi ng ating gobyerno sila ang makabagong bayani ng ating lipunan kaya sana naman ay talagang gawin nila sa lalong madaling panahon iyong pagtulong sa kanila lalo na sa kanilang kapakanan.

"Para naman sa ating mga kababayan na nasa ganoong kalagayan ngayon, sana ay manatili kayong matibay at matatag," the bishop added.

Based on the migrant workers' rights group, Migrante International, there are more than 4,000 stranded Filipino workers now outside the Philippine Consulate building in Jeddah, asking to be repatriated.

Meanwhile, Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz denied claims by some sectors that the Philippine government has not been acting on the request for repatriation by the stranded Filipinos in Saudi Arabia.

In a radio interview, Baldoz said the processing of the pertinent documents of the Filipinos would take time as the process of validating and getting a permission from the employers are tedious.