FACT CHECK: Robredo did not rebuke VP Duterte’s claims about OFW repatriation

Claim: Naga City Mayor Leni Robredo publicly disputed Vice President Sara Duterte’s claim that repatriating overseas Filipino workers from the Middle East would be easy, citing airspace restrictions and security threats in the region.

Rating: FALSE

Why we fact-checked this: A Facebook post quoted Naga City Mayor Leni Robredo saying, “Bakit ka magpapadala ng eroplano, may airspace restrictions at panganib sa seguridad dahil sa aktibong conflict zones between Israel and Iran?”

(Why would you send airplanes when there are airspace restrictions and security dangers due to the active conflict zones between Israel and Iran?)

The post containing the claim was published on Wednesday, March 11, 2026, and has generated 13,000 reactions, 6,800 comments, and 392 shares. The post was presented as a response to the Vice President’s March 6 statement, where Duterte called out the Marcos administration for stalling the repatriation of the stranded OFWs, citing her experience as Davao City mayor when she successfully brought stranded residents home via commercial flights during the pandemic. 

The facts: Robredo’s team confirmed to Rappler on March 17 that the mayor has not responded to Duterte’s remarks about flight issues in the Middle East. 

They said that the Naga City mayor has not issued any statement or comment regarding the Vice President’s remarks on the repatriation of OFWs from the Middle East amid the ongoing United States- Israel war on Iran.

Government mandate: President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said that due to airspace restrictions, mass repatriations remain dangerous, urging migrant workers to prioritize their safety. However, the Office of the President assured that they already directed the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) and the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) to assist OFWs seeking voluntary repatriation.

The DMW began evacuating stranded OFWs from the Middle East as early as March 5. By March 13, the department confirmed in a statement that it had successfully repatriated a total of 849 OFWs and their dependents.

During a joint hearing of the House committees on overseas workers affairs and foreign affairs, DMW Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac reported that over 4,000 OFWs in the Middle East have received assistance. The government also assured the public that it is actively securing alternative routes to bring migrant workers home safely.

Air travel: According to data from FlightRadar24, a site that analyzes flight routes across the world, a regional airspace closure has been mandated in the Middle East due to the ongoing war (READ: Trump revels in killing of Iran’s leaders as war nears two-week mark).

Due to geopolitical volatility, countries in and around the Middle East have enforced safety measures, leading to difficulties in air traffic control. While flights have resumed, they are limited to certain aviation corridors in parts of the Middle East. 

In an interview with CNN, a consulting director for Strategic Air Australia explained that flight delays stem from airlines recalculating alternative routes for risk assessment and securing permission to fly through each country’s airspace. – Marc Nathaniel Servo/Rappler.com

Marc Nathaniel Servo is a Rappler intern. He is a fourth-year journalism student from the Polytechnic University of the Philippines and the former associate editor of PUP College of Communication’s The Communicator.

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