55 Pinoys repatriated from Jeddah due home Sunday, Monday

At least 55 Filipinos sheltered at the Consulate-operated facility Hajj Seaport Terminal and who were cleared for repatriation are to arrive Sunday and Monday. The Department of Foreign Affairs said the latest batch had been cleared by the Jawazat (Saudi Directorate General for Passports). "The first batch of 39 Filipinos, composed of 30 women and nine children, is expected to arrive in Manila (Sunday) and another batch of 16, made up of 14 women and two children, will arrive (Monday)," it said in a news release. It said the 55 are part of the 91 Filipinos transferred from the Hajj Terminal last May 23, where 79 Filipinos have been cleared for repatriation. On the other hand, the remainder of the group will be arriving in the coming days, the DFA said. The DFA Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs, together with the Office of the President-Presidential Adviser on Political Affairs, Office of the Vice President, Department of Labor and Employment, Overseas Workers Welfare Administration, House of Representatives-Committee on Overseas Workers Affairs, and the Office of Muslim Affairs, made concerted representations for the repatriated Filipinos. All the concerned agencies also coordinated efforts to provide appropriate assistance for the repatriation operations, the DFA added. The Hajj Terminal operations is a special arrangement made by the Philippine government with Saudi authorities for the repatriation of overstaying Filipinos in the country. It started in September 2009 after representations by the Consulate with the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the approval of the Office of the Emir of Makkah to address the cases of Filipinos staying under the Sitteen Khandara overpass in hope of an expedited deportation proceeding. They are brought to and are sheltered at the Hajj Terminal, while awaiting the provision of their ticket and the processing of their exit papers. The use of the facilities at the Hajj Terminal are paid by the Consulate at 15 Saudi Riyals a day per person. — KBK, GMA News