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| OFWs arriving at Manila airport undergo rapid testing before being sent to quarantine facilities |
The Philippine Coast Guard has announced that an
overseas Filipino worker whose test result showed he was positive for Covid-19 after
he escaped from a quarantine facility in Pasay City has been found.
PCG spokesperson Commodore Armando Balilo said
in a statement issued on May 18 that the 49-year-old OFW was sent to a
treatment center and will be charged with violating quarantine rules after he recovers.
He also said the OFW’s family members and
other people he was in contact with have been located and put under isolation,
while being tested for the disease.
The infected OFW was reportedly only on his fourth
day in the quarantine center when he escaped.
Seven other OFWs who also escaped from the quarantine
center but were found negative of the coronavirus, are still being sought.
Balilo said they will likewise be arrested and
charged with breaking quarantine laws.
The Coast Guard appealed to OFWs and their
families to cooperate in the enforcement of the stringent protocols for
repatriated workers, particularly the need for them to be tested and declared free
of the virus before being allowed to go home.
“We know how much you want to be with your
family. We know how hard it is to not be with them during this crisis but we
need your cooperation to make this measure work,” Balilo said.
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| OFWs get a hearty welcome before being sent off for quarantine |
Around 23,000 repatriated OFWs have been
placed in quarantine centers after arriving in Manila. They were all subjected
to rapid testing on arrival, but authorities later decided they must go through
two rounds of swab tests as well.
So far, only 7,000 test results have been
released, according to the Coast Guard, which administered the tests, along with
the Bureau of Quarantine.
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As a result, most of the OFWs have been under quarantine
for more than a month already, and are agitating to be released so they can go
home to their families. They were told initially that they would be kept in the
facilities for only 14 days.
As of Monday, the Philippines had recorded 12,718
Covid-19 cases. Of these, 2,729 have recovered, while 831 have
died.
