Help at hand for Filipinos in distress

Philippine consulate helped repatriate more than 1,000 Filipinos till September this year

If you’re a distressed Filipino living in Dubai or any of the Northern Emirates, help is available at the Philippine consulate, a top diplomat said.

Philippine Consul-General Paul Raymund Cortes urged his compatriots to come to the consulate if they need help concerning repatriation or legal assistance for cases where the consulate can extend help.

Cortes said this as he announced that the consulate, through its Assistance-To-Nationals (ATN) Section, repatriated 1,080 Filipinos from January 1 to September 30.

“Many of our compatriots do not know that we can help them. If they are in need and they want to go home for good, they can come to us and we will recommend to the Department of Foreign Affairs in Manila to assist them financially. The bottom line is we help any Filipino who is in need and is in distress, we do not discriminate,” Cortes told Gulf News.

Cortes said the consulate has so far spent $559,162.72 (Dh2.05 million) from the ATN Fund to assist Filipinos during the first nine months of the year.

Cortes said the cases handled included absconding, labourrelated concerns, and immorality cases, among others. The figures did not include medical repatriation cases yet. Rey Angulo, an accredited volunteer social worker, said the consulate has helped repatriate more than 20 patients — including stretcher cases — from Rashid Hospital alone from January to September.

“Personally, I have not encountered a single patient or detainee that the consulate did not help repatriate. As a social worker, this gives a lot of hope to Filipinos, knowing that they have someone to lean on when times are tough.”

Angulo said he personally commends ATN officials for working non-stop in visiting Filipinos in hospitals and jails, and in assisting them.

The consulate also offers psycho-social counselling through the help of trained personnel and volunteer psychologists.