Gov’t to fly home 1,000 OFWs stranded in Hong Kong

Department of Foreign Affairs (INQUIRER FILE PHOTO)

Malacañang has approved a plan to fly home more than a thousand overseas Filipino workers (OFW) who were stranded in Hong Kong because a travel agency duped them.

Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano on Friday said the costs of their trips would be covered by the DFA and Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE).

“Our kababayans in Hong Kong and other parts of the world have a very special place in President Duterte’s heart and it is just right that we make their Christmas wishes come true by doing what we can to bring them home,” Cayetano said in a statement on Friday.

In addition, Cayetano said he has ordered the Philippine Consulate General in Hong Kong to file criminal charges against PEYA Travel, the Filipino-owned travel agency accused of duping the OFWs.

The DFA chief said the travel agency “defrauded” the workers of their plane tickets.

“We also will pursue a civil suit against PEYA Travel to compensate our kababayans for the damages they suffered,” the DFA chief said.