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The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) and the Department of Health (DoH) repatriated 444 overseas Filipinos (OFs) from the M/V Grand Princess cruise ship docked in the Port of Oakland in California, USA early morning of March 16. Among the 444 repatriated OFs are 438 crew members and six passengers. The repatriates underwent health screening upon disembarkation from the cruise ship facilitated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Information regarding the repatriates is currently being validated. “While the US government did not perform any mass confirmatory testing for our repatriates, only those who are asymptomatic were allowed to board the plane home. We will conduct testing for our repatriates immediately once they have settled. To echo our President, our priority now is to bring them home and ensure that they are well-taken care of,” Health Secretary Francisco T. Duque III said. “In the meantime, we will be observing strict quarantine and containment p...

Senator Cynthia Villar commended the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) for the launching of a program that will make passport applications more accessible to Filipinos. Passport on Wheels (POW), which was initiated by Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano, was launched at Villar SIPAG in Las Pinas and served about 1,500 applicants. “The reforms we are now seeing at DFA such as the opening of more appointment slots and this POW project seek to address concerns about passport applications and consular services to Filipinos,” Villar said. Villar, who was guest of honor during the event, was principal sponsor of Republic Act 10928 or the law extending to 10 years the validity of passports in her capacity as then vice chair of the Committee on Foreign Relations. The law amended Section 10 of Republic Act 8239 or the Philippine Passport Act of 1996 extending the validity of regular passports from five years to a period of 10 years. For individuals under 18 years of a...