THE government has funds to pay hotels that accommodated repatriated migrant workers during their isolation, Malacañang said Tuesday, amid issues on its separate debt for coronavirus tests.
The Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) has paid around P2.3 billion to various hotels during the pandemic, said Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque.
“Lahat naman po ‘yan ‘yung mga billings ng hotel ay binubusisi, nagre-reconcile, at vine-verify sang-ayon po sa standard COA procedures,” he said in a public briefing.
“So ‘wag po kayong mag-alala, may pera po tayo diyan. Meron lang po talagang mga paper work at mga validation na kinakailangang gawin bago mabayaran,” he added
The Hotel Sales and Marketing Association earlier this week said OWWA’s P250-million debt had affected the operations of at least 20 hotels that served as COVID-19 quarantine facilities.
The government had tallied a separate, nearly P1-billion debt to the Philippine Red Cross. Medical state insurer PhilHealth has settled about half this balance. (ABS-CBN News)
