The Philippine Overseas Labor Office in Riyadh has stopped distributing food assistance after the Saudi Ministry of Labor noticed the influx of Filipino workers to the Embassy premises.
POLO Riyadh has started distributing “food assistance” last week to Filipinos who were displaced from work have sought for their help.
“The POLO Eastern Region Operations said POLO also clarifies that it is not giving food allowance to workers affected by the COVID-19 crisis, but rather provides food assistance (in kind, not cash) upon request from workers who have stopped working because of the lockdown and are denied of income due to the “no work, no pay” policy,” Labor Attaché Nasser Mustafa in an advisory posted March 26.
A vlogger, Raymond Lopez, showed video in his YouTube channel and Facebook account that he was able to get food assistance from the Embassy after queuing outside the Embassy. He also showed video of many Filipinos lining up to get a document for food assistance.
After showing passport, OFWs will be a given a document that entitles them to a pack of free goods — rice, noodles, can of sardines, soy sauce, vinegar, cooking oil, sugar, salt, coffee, corned beef, toothpaste, laundry soap and bath soap.
OFWs would need to travel to Pinoy Supermarket Batha Riyadh to be able to avail of the POLO Riyadh’s food assistance.
However, Lopez wrote in the Facebook account that Saudi police noticed the unusual number of Filipinos gathering outside the Embassy.
Labor Attaché II Reydeluz Conferido said that POLO had a meeting with the deputy director general of the Saudi Ministry of Labor and Social Development and he explained employers of some OFWs have apparently abandoned them.
The deputy director general, Conferido said, promised that they will call the employers of Filipinos to provide support to Filipinos affected by COVID-19.
After suspending the distribution of food assistance documents, Conferido asked the distressed Filipinos to just send messages at the FB page of POLO, i.e. POLO-Eastern Region Operations, KSA, or send an SMS to the ff numbers:
0545665964;
0566590182;
0548751878;
0559522637;
0556601835;
0566967339;
0502286653;
0505995758;
0502836652;
0595208894;
0506268868;
0550596605;
0554760520;
0568156910; or
0560509373.
In their messages they can write:
1. Full name as stated in the passport
2. Iqama number
3. Full name of company and address
4. Full name of employer and phone number
5. Request or concern
“Huwag po sanang tumawag at overwhelmed kami ng bilang ninyo. Wala po kaming Call Center at may iba pa kaming importanteng gawain maliban sa sumagot sa telepono,” Conferido wrote.
