Foreign ships with Pinoy crew allowed to dock in Manila

In a virtual presser on Thursday, Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles said this was among the new guidelines approved by the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID). (PIA NCR File Photo)

MANILA – The government has allowed foreign cruise ships carrying Filipino crew members to dock in Manila ports and be used as quarantine facility amid the government efforts to contain the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic.

In a virtual presser on Thursday, Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles said this was among the new guidelines approved by the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID).

“Foreign cruise ships carrying Filipino crew shall be allowed to dock in ports in Manila and to be used as a quarantine facility for said Filipino crew members, subject to the guidelines to be issued by the member agencies of the Sub-Task Group for the Repatriation of Overseas Filipino Workers pursuant to their respective mandates,” he said.

Nograles, also IATF spokesperson, said the foreign crew onboard will be allowed to disembark in Manila to take outbound flights to their final destination abroad as previously allowed pursuant to IATF-EID Resolution No. 15 series of 2020.

Foreign crew, however, will only be allowed to take outbound flights after they have completed the 14-day mandatory quarantine upon disembarkation.

Nograles, meanwhile, announced that the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) has started using its two ships as quarantine facilities.

He said the PCG kicked off the operations of the quarantine ships by welcoming 90 repatriated Filipino seafarers from South Korea, Indonesia, and Qatar last Tuesday.

The seafarers, after being screened, were provided with individual room accommodations where they shall complete the 14-day quarantine.

Those who already have hotel bookings prepared by the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) will remain in their respective hotels for their 14-day quarantine after undergoing medical profiling, he added.

On Monday, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said at least 13,000 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) displaced by the impact of Covid-19 have been brought home to the Philippines.

The number of Filipinos with Covid-19 abroad now totals 736. Of this number, 426 are undergoing treatment while 222 have recovered.

There are 88 fatalities.

As of April 15, there are 269 Filipino Covid-19 cases registered in the Asia Pacific region, 237 in Europe, 87 in Middle East/Africa, and 143 in the Americas.