ZAMBOANGA CITY (January 3) — Two hundred Filipinos returning from Sabah were assisted home on Friday by the Department of Social Welfare and Development–9, marking the latest batch of repatriated workers and families heading back to communities in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).
In a statement, DSWD-9 said the returnees are residents of the municipalities of Bongao and Sitangkai in the province of Tawi-Tawi.
The agency provided transportation assistance and financial support to cover food and basic needs during the group’s journey back to their hometowns.
DSWD-9 said the repatriates arrived in Zamboanga City on December 20, 2025, after returning from Sabah. While awaiting onward travel, they were temporarily sheltered at the agency’s Processing Center for Displaced Persons (PCDP) in Barangay Mampang.
PCDP head Abdulman Samson said the center organized a year-end celebration for the returnees on Thursday to help ease the emotional strain of displacement during the holiday season.
“The activity is conducted annually to help the clients experience the spirit of the holidays despite being away from their families,” DSWD-9 said.
The agency added that coordination with local government units in BARMM was undertaken to ensure the safe and orderly return of the families to their communities, many of whom had spent years living and working abroad.
