Aquino Reveals Christmas Wish for OFWs
MANILA – President Aquino hopes that Filipinos, especially those living abroad, will have more quality time to spend with their families this Christmas.
“Christmas to the Filipino is family time. We have 10 million Filipinos supposedly out of the country and you’d want some contact between the 10 million and their families here and quality time at that, ‘di ba?” Aquino said during a forum in Manila.
Aquino, who has been busy in making sure that the country is well prepared for super typhoon Ruby, said the holiday celebration should not be focused on material things but more on being able to relish every second that they spend with their loved ones.
“So the wish really is that we have that peaceful moment where we are not confronted with very severe challenges like last year, and that we are focused on really just pausing and enjoying something that is so intrinsically part of the Filipino culture, which is having that family time. So if we are able to assist in maximizing that opportunity, then I think that is the central wish,” he said.
But things may be different for OFWs who remain in quarantine areas following their return from Sierra Leone, one of the West African countries affected by Ebola virus.
Returning Filipinos from countries hit by the dreaded virus need to undergo a 21-day quarantine period.
The Department of Health also stressed that it will not shorten the quarantine period to two weeks.
“Ang incubation period ay hindi nagbabago, ito ay dalawampu’t isang araw. Ibig sabihin kung pagbibigyan ang dalawang linggo, may nalalabi pang isang linggo na posibleng lumitaw ang problema o mga sintomas ng Ebola,” said Dr. Lyndon Lee Suy.