THE Ministry of Social Services and Development in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (MSSD-Barmm) safely repatriated 694 Returning Filipinos from Sabah (ReFS) to Tawi-Tawi in September, ensuring their safe transit and reintegration with their families.
The MSSD-Barmm said the arrivals of ReFS came in several batches: 199 individuals on September 2; 174 adults and 25 children on September 4; 201 on September 15; and, 90 on September 17.
The most recent group of 90 ReFS travelled from Zamboanga City on Wednesday, September 17, after staying four days at the Processing Center for Displaced Persons (PCDP) of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD)-Zamboanga Peninsula, where they were profiled and provided with temporary shelter, food, medical assistance, and transportation support by MSSD-Zamboanga Satellite Office while awaiting clearance.
Upon arrival in Tawi-Tawi, the ReFS were received by the MSSD Provincial Operations Office, which extended counselling, family tracing, and other psychosocial support.
“Counselling is important because it provides the ReFS with a safe and confidential space to process the difficult emotions and challenges they have gone through,” Leeshabel Adil, MSSD-Zamboanga Satellite Office chief, said in a statement.
Adil said the MSSD and Tawi-Tawi provincial government also provided them free transportation, food, and accommodation during the transition.
She said ReFS whose families could not yet be located remain under MSSD’s custody for continued assistance. (SunStar Zamboanga)