MANILA -- The Philippines should "fix" repatriation and quarantine protocols for repatriated overseas Filipino workers, the head of a labpr think tank said Tuesday, following reports some of the OFWs were isolated 4 times longer than the required 14 days.

"Pagbalik ng second wave ng mga repatriates, ano iyong pagbabago sa sistema? Hindi naman puwedeng laging nagagalit o nakamasid ang Palasyo. Dapat ayusin din nila iyong sistema," said Susan Ople, president of the Blas F. Ople Policy Center and a former labor undersecretary.

(When the second wave of repatriates arrives, what will cange in the system? The Palace can't be always mad or on the lookout. They sould fix the system.)

• Philippines sends home 4,000 stranded OFWs
• Duterte gives agencies 1 week to bring repatriated OFWs to home provinces

The Philippines has repatriated some 27,000 migrant workers and around 43,000 others are expected to come home until June, officials earlier said.

Authorities have fixed initial problems with encoding and the printing of quarantine certificates that delayed OFWs from going home, said Interior Secretary Eduardo Año.

The printing of certificates is a "ministerial" task and should not be a chokepoint, said Ople.

DZMM, May 26, 2020