Filipino deportees arrive in Zamboanga
ZAMBOANGA CITY: Dozens of Filipinos deported by Malaysian authorities arrived here by boat on Sunday as the local government braces for thousands more, with Sabah starting to send home illegal immigrants.
Mayor Isabelle Climaco said at least 97 deportees were ferried back home after 300 others, who are natives of Tawi-Tawi province, disembarked in Bongao town.
She added that out of the 97 deportees, only a dozen were residents of Zamboanga, while the rest were from the provinces of Zamboanga Sibugay, Zamboanga del Sur, Basilan, Sulu and other regions.
“Those who are not from here were fetched by (representatives of) their local governments,” the mayor said.
Climaco added that the local deportees were immediately brought to a quarantine facility as part of strict health protocols before they are sent home.
“We want to ensure they are free from the disease before they return to their families,” she said, referring to coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).
The Department of Social Welfare and Development said the first batch of deportees — all 395 of them — had undergone Covid-19 rapid testing in Sabah prior to their departure, but they still need to undertake coronavirus testing again when they reach the country as part of the government’s health protocols.
Sabah is set to deport some 5,300 Filipinos illegally staying in the rich Malaysian state just several hours by boat from Tawi-Tawi.
They are now being held at four congested jails after it temporarily suspended the repatriation since March because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
AL JACINTO