Philippine Consulate helps jobless man return home

Top Stories

Philippine Consulate helps jobless man return home

Dubai - He recently arrived in Dubai on a visit visa hoping to find a job.

By Web Report

  • Follow us on
  • google-news
  • whatsapp
  • telegram

Published: Thu 19 Jul 2018, 5:46 PM

The Philippine Consulate General in Dubai is in the process of helping an ailing jobless Filipino to return home. The man arrived in Dubai on a visit visa hoping to secure a job. He instead ended up being hospitalised following a life-threatening condition.
According to the Filipino Times, Francis Santiago has been at the Iranian Hospital since June 7. The 40-year-old father of two arrived in Dubai last April and received a job offer after Ramadan in 2018. But before he could even start, Santiago was diagnosed with pulmonary edema and dilated cardiomyopathy. He had to undergo a surgery since doctors found that his condition was worsening.
His medical bills shot up to over Dh150,000 during his month-long stay. The report also revealed that he did not have any medical insurance to cover the expenses.
Learning about his predicament, Consul General Paul Raymund Cortes paid him a visit and said that the consulate has paid for his plane ticket back to the Philippines. The report also revealed that the hospital and consulate are in talks to allow Santiago to leave and have his passport back. It was initially held against the pending payments.
"The patient has been released from the hospital without payment last week," the hospital's Finance and Admission Manager, Mollaei Mohammed was quoted by the Filipino Times.
The Consulate is also working on settling his hospital bills.


More news from