Villanueva appeals ban on returning Filipinos

Senator Joel Villanueva on Thursday urged the government to reconsider its ban on returning Filipinos, saying their extended stay overseas only puts them and their families in a difficult situation.

"Every Filipino who had lost his job, on his last money, and had last seen his family years ago, is a kababayan in distress. Huwag po natin antaying magkalkal sila ng mga basura para makakain o mamalimos sa tabi-tabi,” Villanueva said in a statement.

(Let's not wait for them to rummage through garbage for food or seek alms on the street.)

Villanueva added the government should not allow the number of overseas Filipinos waiting for a flight home to increase since their savings and investments might run out. 

Villanueva chairs the Senate labor committee.

Earlier, The National Task Force Against COVID-19 (NTF) suspended the entry of foreign nationals and returning overseas Filipinos who are non-overseas Filipino workers into the country starting Saturday, March 20 until Monday, April 19.

The NTF also directed concerned agencies to limit the number of inbound international passengers to 1,500 a day.

The said measures were meant to prevent a further rise in COVID-19 as well as to prevent the entry of coronavirus variants from other countries.

While he understands the risks involved, Villanueva believes that banning Filipinos from coming home to their families is not the solution.

"This is the most inhumane act we can do to our fellow Filipinos. Again, this requires using simple and tested approaches: strict quarantine requirements, effective contact tracing, and quick-roll out of the vaccination program,” he said.

Individuals exempted from the entry ban, according to the NTF, are holders of 9(c) visas, medical repatriation and their escort/s duly endorsed by the DFA-OUMWA or OWWA, distressed returning overseas Filipinos duly endorsed by DFA-OUMWA, and emergency, humanitarian, and other analogous cases approved by the NTF. — Erwin Colcol/RSJ, GMA News