About 51 overseas Filipino workers (OFW) have arrived in Tagbilaran from
Cebu. The OFWs arrived Saturday morning and their arrival is in response
to the marching orders of national authorities.
It was earlier reported by www.theboholtribune.com that 52 OFWs were
scheduled to arrive Saturday at the Tagbilaran tourism seaport, but one
OFW was not able to join the voyage to Bohol due to “personal pressing
matters”.
The Bohol Tribune was at the Tagbilaran tourism seaport to cover the
arrival of the OFWs from Cebu yesterday dawn. The OFWs arrived in
Tagbilaran 4am of Saturday morning, via the vessel Lite Shipping
Corporation.
Sources confirmed that, indeed, 51 OFWs arrived in Bohol. The information
was further corroborated by sources from the Capitol.
The returning OFWs from Cebu are part of those identified earlier by the
Inter Agency Task Force (IATF).
Multiple sources confirmed that the new batch of OFWs from Cebu is
billeted in a resort in Panglao. The sources identified the resort as The
Story Resort in barangay Danao, Panglao.
The information about the location of the quarantine site is already
available publicly though the posts of local media personalities
According to a very reliable source, the breakdown of these 52 returning
OFWs based on the town where they are from is as follows: 14 – Tagbilaran
City, 4 – Panglao, 3 – Calape, 1 – Sikatuna, 2 – Trinidad, 2 – Antequera, 4
– Tubigon, 1 – Garcia Hernandez, 2 – Talibon, 1 – Buenavista, 1 –
Catigbian, 1 – Pilar, 1 – Guindulman, 2 – Sierra Bullones, 3 – Dauis, 1 –
loay, 1 – Jagna, 1 – Sagbayan, 1 – Corella, 1 – Candijay, 1 – Dagohoy, 1 –
Bien Unido, 1 – Sevilla, 1 – Loboc, 1 – Ubay
These 52 OFWs are the ones who tested NEGATIVE in the PCR Test
conducted in Cebu City. They are also the ones who already have their
quarantine certication indicating that they are done with the 14 days of
quarantine period in Cebu City as certified by the DOH and OWWA.
All these returning OFWs stayed in Cebu City for their quarantine protocol
and nobody came direct from Manila.
Earlier, about 17 OFWs from Cebu arrived in Bohol on April 28, 2020 and
are presently billeted at Mercedarian Retreat House in barangay Poblacion,
Dauis.
Then, another batch arrived and the OFWs belonging to this batch are
presently billeted at the “Crab House” along Mansasa Drive, this city. Days
after, some of the members of this batch were transferred to the Roman
Empire, a hotel in Panglao, Bohol.
The OFWs who arrived yesterday have already completed a 14-day
quarantine and have undergone the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests
prior to the arrival in Bohol. The OFWs will again be subjected to another
PCR test next week.
According to a Capitol press release, the Department of Tourism (DoT) and
the Inter Agency Task Force (IATF) were the ones which designated the
quarantine site.
Meantime, as of yesterday afternoon, no word was released to any media
outlet regarding the results of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test on
the 65 repatriated OFWs plus their contacts. Last Tuesday, the OFWs plus
11 frontliners were subjected this PCR test.
Gov. Art Yap and Kevin Damalerio, head of the public information cluster of
the Covid-19 working group, assured the public to “call spade, a spade” as
far as the test results are concerned.
The test results were expected before the weekend but, as of press time,
the provincial government reportedly hasn’t received any notification about
the matter from the Department of Health, Region 7.