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CEBU CITY, Philippines - The Cebu provincial government said Monday it was willing to shoulder the airfare of the 23 detained overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in Trinidad, which costs up to P92,000 each.
However, Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia said they will withdraw their offer of assistance for now after learning that the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) would take charge in bringing the workers home.
In a meeting with the families of the 23 workers at her office on Monday, Garcia told them that they cannot do anything unless the national government declares that it could not afford to spend for the workers.
During a phone conversation with labor attaché Florenda Herrera, Garcia got irritated after being told of Labor Secretary Marianito Roque's gratitude for the Capitol's offer.
“After two weeks he will just say that's not a problem? That is very funny. Had you (Herrera) not mentioned the offer of the Cebu provincial government, they would not have acted,” an irate Garcia told Herrera over the phone.
“But I hope that that the labor secretary will make good on his word that they will bring these people home,” the governor added.
Governor Garcia was also upset over Herrera's insistence during their conversation that the detained OFWs preferred to stay in Trinidad and seek other employment after they are released from jail.
Herrera's statement runs contrary to honorary consul Marie Magno Advani's earlier statement that the detained OFWs want to come home.
The families of the workers who come from Mandaue City, Cebu City, Camotes Island and Danao City reiterated anew their desire for their loved ones to come home.
The families recounted to Governor Garcia the dismal conditions experienced by the 23 workers in jail.
They said the workers complained of the heat inside their cells and of having to subsist on bread once a day since they cannot eat the food served to them.
They said they already sought help from the POEA, the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) and the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) for their case but lamented that they were simply passed around.
Garcia said she talked with Capitol officials on what assistance the province can provide and what legal action to take against the recruiter, Be Glad Worldwide Placement Agency.
