(Ime Sornito / Panay News)
April 10, 2021
https://www.panaynews.net/displaced-ilonggo-ofws-get-p10k-assistance/
A total of 137 displaced overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in this province recently each availed themselves of P10,000 monetary assistance from the provincial government.
The move was anchored on a provincial ordinance mandating aid to OFWs who “experienced job displacement due to the receiving country’s political unrest, civil war, natural calamities, maltreatment by foreign employer and/or by reason of sickness/accident.”
Majority of these 137 workers were displaced by the economic slump caused by the coronavirus pandemic, according to Francisco Heler Jr., head of the Public Employment Service Office (PESO) here.
“From Feb. 22 to April 8, 2021, these OFWs were given P10,000 financial assistance each. Naka-release na kita sang P1,370,000,” Heler told Panay News.
Also, the official noted that most of these OFWs were sea-based – particularly those working in cruise ships – and the others were land-based.
Twenty-five of the recipients were from the 1st District of this province and 26 from the 2nd District.
Meanwhile, there were 38 beneficiaries from the 3rd District.
As to the 4th and 5th districts, 30 and 18 OFWs, respectively, received assistance.
Aside from this, Heler said the PESO was processing some 25 applications “and for payout na lang.”
The provincial government allotted 410 slots per congressional district, he noted, with an equivalent budget of P4,200,000.
Heler is encouraging other displaced Ilonggo OFWs to contact their respective municipal PESO officers.
For the worker to avail himself of the assistance, he/she must meet these following criteria:
- The applicant must be a bona fide resident of Iloilo province.
- The applicant must be an active overseas Filipino worker.
What do we mean by active?
- Filipino citizens employed in a foreign country
- Who is physically present in a foreign country as a consequence of his employment thereat and his/her salaries/wages must be paid by an employer abroad and not borne by any entity or person in the Philippines
- He or she is an active member of Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA)
What are the requirements?
* duly accomplished application form
* barangay certificate of residency
* proof of repatriation document from OWWA Region 6
* affidavit of undertaking of not having received any financial and/or credit assistance from host country
* proof of loss of employment, any of the following (certificate of contract, suspension from foreign employers or local manning agency, medical certificate /affidavit of undertaking)
* flight ticket or boarding pass evidencing return to the Philippines or passport with arrival stamp/sticker
* proof of overseas employment any of the following (valid and verified overseas employment contract/OEC/ Residence I.D./Visa/re-entry visa/permit to stay in the host country
How to apply?
* Applicant should download the application form and affidavit of undertaking template from www.iloilo.gov.ph/, www.iloiloprovince.balikbayan.gov.ph/, www.facebook.com/peso.ilo or may obtain from PESO-Iloilo or municipal PESO
* Upon completely securing all documentary requirements, applicants shall upload photos of the documentary requirements online via QR code or Google Form link or found at www.iloilo.gov.ph or www.facebook.com/peso.ilo
* Applicants shall be selected for interview based on the completeness of the documents in online submission on a first-come, first-serve basis.
* Applicants who passed online screening shall receive an appointment schedule from PESO thru text and call. In turn, applicants must reply to acknowledge the message.
* Applicant with appointment shall proceed to the Iloilo Provincial Capitol and submit the required number of copies of documentary requirements for validation and approval.
* Applicant with successful applications can claim their financial assistance within three working days under normal conditions after approval of their application
To note, the provincial ordinance – authored by third district Sangguniang Panlalawigan member Jason Gonzales – was passed in the third and final reading in December 2020.
“Ini (cash aid) gamay lang nga bulig pero ang tuyo naton nga ma-alleviate ang pangabudlay sang OFWs,” Gonzales earlier said.
He estimated that there were around 18,000 repatriated Ilonggo OFWs since the height of the pandemic last year.
