As others reunite this Holy Week, OFW mom leaves PH to support family
Several Holy Week travelers flock at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport and wait for their scheduled flight out of the country. —Photo by Faith Argosino | INQUIRER.net
MANILA, Philippines — While many mothers are set to spend more time with their families this Holy Week, Marichu Feliciano—a domestic helper in Kuwait—is among thousands of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) bound to leave the country this Holy Monday in hopes of financially supporting her two children and husband in Isabela province.
According to the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA), 150,551 passengers flocked to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) on Palm Sunday. The agency is expecting around 150,000 travelers to arrive in the country’s main gateway daily for the rest of the week.
READ: Most provincial bus drivers get no Holy Week break: ‘But we also pray’
Feliciano is among the over 70,000 passengers monitored at Naia terminals so far within the day. She shared that she has been camping out at Terminal 1 since 6 a.m., waiting for her 10 p.m. flight. But before this, the 42-year-old OFW also endured a seven- to eight-hour bus ride from Isabela province to the airport in Pasay City.
Asked how she feels about leaving her family and camping at the airport so early, Feliciano said she is used to it.
“Wala naman ako magawa syempre kapag hindi ako bumalik, wala naman kasi ako hanap buhay sa amin. Hindi pa tapos ang aking anak mag-graduate pa lang ngayon, kaya nagpu-pursigi akong mapagtapos po siya,” the OFW told INQUIRER.net in an interview.
(I can’t do anything. I have no other means to earn money if I don’t return to Kuwait. My eldest hasn’t graduated yet, so I’m trying my best to support her studies so she can finish it.)
Feliciano revealed that her eldest child is already a fourth-year nursing student, while her youngest opted to stop his studies and become a construction worker.
Meanwhile, her work in Kuwait allows her to serve a family of three —a British man with his two grade-school children—in Sabah Al Salem City since 2017. She could only return to the country after working there for seven years in 2023 and also in March this year.
For OFWs returning to and leaving the country, Naia Terminal 1 and Terminal 3 offer a 24-hour lounge solely dedicated to migrant workers, with free food, services, and amenities.
The initiative was launched by the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA), the Department of Migrant Workers, and the Manila International Airport Authority.
The OFW lounge in Terminal 3 was constructed by the New Naia Infra Corp (NNIC) before being turned over to OWWA, while the lounge in Terminal 1 was built by OWWA itself.
Asked about this lounge, Feliciano said she had not used it and only heard that the lounge offers free food and unlimited stay.
To ensure the convenience of travelers, MIAA head executive assistant Atty. Manuel Jeffrey David said the NNIC implemented shortened roadway closures to accommodate more flights.
Moreover, the Department of Transportation and Bureau of Immigration dispatched more personnel during peak hours — 3:30 a.m. to 7 a.m. and 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. — to fill out the immigration counters and expedite their immigration process.
He likewise assured the public that no untoward incidents occurred inside the Naia terminals during Palm Sunday.
