IMEE: OFWs IN SAUDI ARABIA NEED MASS EVACUATION PLAN
Senator Imee Marcos has urged the government to draw up not just travel advisories but also clear-cut contingency plans including a mass evacuation of OFWs in the Middle East, particularly Saudi Arabia, as US-Iran hostilities are expected to escalate.
Iran has vowed revenge on the United States and its Middle East allies, Saudi Arabia and Israel, after the US admitted to the killing Friday of Iran’s top military commander Qasem Soleimani in Baghdad, Iraq.
“Karamihan sa ating mga OFW sa Middle East ay nasa Saudi Arabia na kilalang kaalyado ng US, kagaya ng Israel. Hindi kasi pwedeng kapag nagkaroon na ng mga pag-atake ang Iran sa mga kaalayadong bansa ng US, eh, doon pa lang tayo kikilos para mailikas ang ating mga kababayang OFW,” Marcos said.
Of the 2.3 million OFWs worldwide, some 559,000 or almost one out of every four is based in Saudi Arabia, according to a 2018 survey by the Philippine Statistics Authority. At least 30,000 more OFWs are in Israel.
“Agapan na natin, huwag na nating hintaying magkagulo pa, saka tayo magpaplano kung paano ililigtas ang ating mga kamag-anak at kaibigan sa Middle East,” Marcos said.
“Magtulungan na tayo para may alternatibong hanapbuhay o pagkakakitaan ang mga OFWs nang hindi na sila nakikipagsapalaran pa malayo sa kanilang mga pamilya.” Marcos added.
Flor Rosales TV 