Oman Looking for Doctors, Nurses

The Persian Gulf state of Oman is in need of 3,288 doctors and nurses, reports Inquirer.net. Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz said Oman was hiring due to a projected shortage in medical professionals in the country. “This latest positive development will certainly boost the chances of our highly skilled and highly qualified medical workers, particularly our nurses, of getting a job in Oman if they are inclined to,” she said in a statement.

Sabah Armed Group Urged to Cool It

The Department of Foreign Affairs on Thursday renewed its appeal to a group of armed Filipinos holed up in a village in Sabah to leave the area peacefully to prevent armed confrontation with Malaysian authorities, reports GMA News. Followers of Sultan of Sulu Rajah Mudah Agbimuddin Kiram who are engaged in a nearly two week standoff with Malaysian forces crossed to Malaysian-controlled Sabah last week to reclaim their ancestral homeland. 

Prince Philip to Pinay Nurse--PH Must Be Half-Empty

The Duke of Edinburgh was only apparently joking when he told a Filipina nurse that the Philippines must be “half-empty,” but he was right in summarizing the state of overseas Filipino workers, reports ABS-CBN News. In a report in the Telegraph UK, the 91-year-old Prince Philip told a Filipina nurse working at the Luton and Dunstable Hospital: "The Philippines must be half-empty - you're all here running the [National Health Service].” The nurse could only laugh. Prince Philip visited the hospital to unveil a £5.5 million cardiac center.

Workers Warned of Non-Existent Jobs in Italy

The Department of Labor and Employment on Monday warned Filipinos seeking jobs abroad against falling for non-existent offers in Italy, reports GMA News. The department particularly warned residents of Bataan, Baguio and Isabela that illegal recruiters have been fielded in their area by representatives of Global Management System, a company reportedly based in France. Recruiters were reportedly offering victims jobs as farm workers, guest relations officers, housekeeping workers and information assistants for Raffaldini Farms/Vineyards Hotel Resort in Italy. The recruiters cited a job order supposedly issued by Global Management System to  MYUPANGCO Consultancy based in Rome.

Alert for SARS-Like Infection Sounded

The Philippines' Department of Health alerted all hospitals on Monday against  the novel coronavirus, called NCoV, after the World Health Organization cited a third case in England, reports Manila Standard Today. The third case seems to be unrelated to the ones in Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Jordan where thousands of Filipinos work. All hospitals were told to report suspected NcoV cases. There are no travel restrictions to and from countries where these cases have been reported, but the Bureau of Quarantine  routinely screens in-bound passengers regardless of country of origin for any signs of illness that may require temporary isolation. Frequent hand washing, observance of cough etiquette and social distancing will also help prevent spread of this illness. 

More Pinoys Re-Acquiring PH Citizenship

There has been a significant increase in the number of former Filipino citizens who are re-acquiring their Phlippine citizenship, reports Interaksyon.com. According to the Bureau of Immigration, a total of 30,362 natural-born Filipinos who became naturalized citizens of other countries re-acquired their Philippine citizenship last year under Republic Act 9225 (Citizenship Retention and Reacquisition Act of 2003). The number is about 10,000 more than that of 2011.

First Sari-Sari Store Opens in Canary Islands

The first-ever Filipino convenience store with free access to WIFI service opened last January to cater to the needs of the big Pinoy community in Las Palmas, Canary Islands in Spain, reports ABS-CBN News. Owned by Filipina Jenneth Karlsson, the Mabuhay Store is patronized by more than 2,000 Filipinos in Las Palmas. Philippine products such as fresh and dried fish, vinegar, soy sauce, bagoong, sardines, are among the items sold in the store.

Malaysians Surround 100 "Armed" Filipinos

Malaysian troops have surrounded about 100 armed men believed to be from a breakaway rebel faction in the southern Philippines, Malaysian, reports GMA News. But a Philippine official said they were unarmed Filipinos who had been promised land. The standoff in Malaysia's eastern Sabah state threatened to stir tension between the Southeast Asian neighbors whose ties have been periodically frayed by security and migration problems caused by a porous sea border. Malaysian police said in  the situation was "under control", but did not say whether the men had agreed with a request to surrender.

"We are dealing with 100 armed foreigners from the southern Philippines. The army and the police have cordoned off the place where these foreigners are waiting," a high-ranking Malaysian government source with direct knowledge of the situation told Reuters.

He said the gunmen were suspected to be from a faction unhappy with the Philippines' recent peace deal with the main Muslim rebel group in southern Mindanao island.