A total of 500 individuals from Sabah have been deported back to the country last Saturday. The Department of Social Welfare and Development through its Processing Center for Displaced Persons has provided temporary shelter and emergency relief assistance to the displaced persons.

“Some started arriving last Thursday, but most of them arrived last Saturday night. We immediately provided them with hygiene kits, food and medical needs.” PCDP Center Head Jamila Arasad stated.

Aside from the immediate assistance, the Center also conducted debriefing and literacy sessions on labor and immigration laws and passport application procedures with the deportees to prevent the same thing to happen again in the future.

Arasad also said that they have been in constant coordination with DOH for the provision of first aid to individuals who have suffered skin problems.

“Maraw da isab in pag-ayuput kamu sin DSWD. Maraw tyabang nila kami bat di nau kynatan pakain kami di ha samboangan.” (The DSWD took good care of us. It’s good that they helped us because there’s nowhere to go.) shared Misra Daud,  one of the deportees who is scheduled to leave for Jolo today.

As of this writing, the department has provided free transportation tickets to deportees who are scheduled to leave today and tomorrow; 122 are bound to Tawi-Tawi, 143 to Basilan, 94 to Jolo, 49 to the different provinces of zamboanga peninsula and 28 to other provinces. A total of Php393,420 has been disbursed by the department for the assistance extended to the repatriates, including food, clothing and transport fare.###