ILOILO – The provincial government has confirmed that 65 Ilonggo overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in Lebanon have been accounted for as safe through the efforts of the Public Employment Service Office (PESO). This update comes amid the continuing threat of war between Lebanon-based terrorist group Hezbollah and Israel.
According to Cynthia Parcon-Dario, the acting head of PESO, out of the 1,731 Ilonggo OFWs in Lebanon, 65 have been reported safe. This information was collected by Municipal PESO Managers and Barangay PESO Coordinators, working at the grassroots levels and in direct contact with the relatives of the OFWs.
The 65 OFWs reported safe hail from various localities including Miag-ao (5), Tigbauan (15), Calinog (1), San Joaquin (2), Santa Barbara (3), Badiangan (1), Anilao (2), Cabatuan (1), Sara (1), Leon (15), Barotac Nuevo (16), and Concepcion (1).
To ascertain the status of the remaining Ilonggo OFWs in Lebanon, Dario said they are actively encouraging Municipal PESO Managers and Barangay PESO Coordinators to broaden information dissemination at the barangay level to gather more data from the families of the OFWs.
However, Dario acknowledged that most Ilonggo OFWs in Lebanon prefer to remain silent as they are safe.
“Most of our OFWs, especially at the peak of the crisis, chose to remain silent. It’s their families who connect with us, wanting them to return home, but according to them, they prefer to stay silent as their situation there is okay,” Parcon added.
The effort to account for Ilonggo OFWs in Lebanon follows an order from Gov. Arthur Defensor Jr. to activate 24/7 emergency hotlines that OFWs or their relatives can call to check on their conditions. These emergency contacts include PESO – 0961-680-4428; 0917-754-3833; 0916-758-3156; and 0910-005-4682; PDRRMO – 0960-834-8147. Messages can also be sent to the PESO-Province of Iloilo Facebook Page.
This initiative is part of the Task Force “Bulig Ilonggo” services, established under Executive Order 004 series of 2020, specifically created to support OFWs and their families in areas prone to war crises. The situation in Lebanon is currently at Alert Level 3, permitting voluntary repatriation as the region continues to face severe disruptions due to hostilities between Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah./PN
