THRU VILLAR'S OFW HELPLINE
Donations pour in for injured OFW

An ailing overseas Filipino worker (OFW) hit by a piece of metal still lodged in his head is expected to be home soon from Saudi Arabia, after assistance poured in for his return ticket and needs.

The OFW, Quirino Sison, 50, a heavy equipment mechanic, earlier reported his predicament in Al Gassim to Nacionalista Party president Manny Villar's helpline set up for distressed Filipino migrant workers.

While on the job and without the protection of a hardhat, Sison was accidentally hit by a "broken bearing" recently coming from a colleague's working area nearby which entered and stayed in his head, as an x-ray showed.

Following news about the OFW reaching Filipino communities in Riyadh, Sison informed Villar's office that he was so surprised to have received a substantial amount of contributions for his plane ticket to Manila.

It was Villar who issued statements calling attention to Sison's plight which reached good-hearted Filipinos in Saudi Arabia after it was carried in the news.

The OFW desires to seek medical attention in Manila after failing to get it in the Middle East country, except for an x-ray. Senator Villar is giving him medical assistance in the absence of any immediate support for Sison.

Villar strongly questioned the lack of protection for workers on the job site and medical attention following the work-related incident.

Harsh conditions faced by OFWs earlier pushed the senator to actively press for the application of the "no-fault insurance system" for OFWs, a form of indemnity plan in which anyone injured in an accident or misfortune receives direct payment from the company that has insured them, eliminating the need for victims to establish another's liability or fault through a civil case.

Villar has filed Senate Bill 3040 or the "Overseas Contract Workers Insurance Act" which seeks compulsory insurance for all OFWs in addition to benefits being provided by OWWA.

The Philippine Embassy made representations with Sison's employer who reportedly cancelled out the OFW's debts in exchange for his plane ticket which has been provided for by donors.

"Sa pagtatrabaho ng aking kasamahan ay natalsikan ako ng basag na bearing at duguan akong dinala sa ospital kung saan ako ay na-x-ray lamang at natagpuan ang piraso ng metal sa ulo ko. Sumasakit po ang ulo ko lalo na pag nakatingala ako na parang may tumutusok, at namamaga, dahilan upang hindi ako makatulog sa gabi," Sison earlier lamented.