MIGRANT workers Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac on Wednesday, April 8, 2026, denied that some 40,000 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) are "stranded" and unable to head to their work destinations in the Middle East.
In a television interview, Cacdac said they disagree with reports that OFWs have been "stranded," saying such a situation is impossible since they are at home.
"There can be no OFWs stranded in their own country. I question the term 'stranded' because there are no Filipinos that are stranded in the Philippines," Cacdac said.
He said the OFWs are not stranded since they have the opportunity to be with their families in their own homes.
Cacdac said the department, along with other government agencies, provides the OFWs with different forms of assistance.
"They have their families with them, and many opportunities are being opened up for them," Cacdac said.
The recruitment sector earlier bared that some 40,000 OFWs bound for Middle East nations are now stranded in the country.
The OFWs are supposedly staying in accommodation centers of their deploying agencies or have been sent back to their provinces as they are unable to get deployed abroad. (Anton Banal/SunStar Philippines)