Gov't has funds to pay for OFWs’ quarantine accommodations —Palace

Malacañang on Friday assured hotel owners that the government would pay for the accommodation expenses of returning overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who were required to undergo quarantine as a precautionary measure against COVID-19 transmission.

Speaking at the Laging Handa briefing, presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) reported that it had settled P2.3 billion in accommodation costs.

However, the Hotel Sales and Marketing Association reportedly said that OWWA still owed 20 hotels operating in Manila, Tagaytay, and Cebu around P241 million.

“Lahat naman po iyan yung mga billing ng hotel ay binubusisi, nire-reconcile, at vine-verify sang-ayon po sa standard ng COA [Commission on Audit] procedures,” Roque said.

“Huwag po kayong magalala, may pera po tayo diyan. Meron lang po talagang mga paperwork at mga validation na kinakailangang gawin bago mabayaran.”

Thousands of OFWs have already returned to the Philippines due to COVID-19’s economic fallout. —KBK, GMA News