DMW orders recall of Bahrain staffer over tense exchange with OFWs seeking aid

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March 9, 2026 | 1:45pm

MANILA, Philippines — Migrant Workers Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac has ordered the recall of an officer in Bahrain after a video showing the staffer allegedly berating Filipinos seeking financial aid went viral.

"I have issued the order recalling that MWO Bahrain employee being highly disrespectful to OFWs in a viral video," Cacdac said on X. "I assure our dear OFWs that we shall continue to serve with humility, respect, and hard work."

This comes after a video clip spread online over the weekend showing a supposed staff member outside the Philippine migrant workers' office in Bahrain telling overseas Filipino workers (OFW) to leave. He can be heard saying that their requests for aid will "not be entertained" as the government's funds have been depleted.

In the clip, a man was heard saying, "Manila ang nagsabi na wala nang pondo (It's the Manila office that said there are no more funds)." He is also heard telling the Filipinos outside to bring their complaints wherever they wished. 

Cacdac did not name the employee or specify what disciplinary action the recall could lead to.

The tense exchange came as the Philippine Embassy in Manama (the capital of Bahrain) announced the suspension of all distribution of financial assistance in a March 6 advisory. 

The embassy cited ongoing missile and drone attacks in the region as the reason for the pause in aid distribution. It said walk-ins without confirmed appointments would not be entertained in compliance with Bahrain's security advisories on mass gatherings.

Previous complaints. The recall is the latest in a wave of complaints against Philippine government personnel in the Middle East amid the escalation of conflict in the region, which began with a joint strike by the United States and Israel on Iran on February 28. 

Senators Raffy and Erwin Tulfo called out the DMW and the Department of Foreign Affairs at a March 5 Senate hearing on migrant workers, saying they had received around 100 complaints about unreachable hotlines, particularly in Riyadh and Bahrain. 

This, Cacdac said during the hearing, was not true, as he personally saw Bahrain personnel during a Zoom call with labor attaches and welfare officers that day. The DMW secretary, however, vowed to look into the matter.

Bahrain has the highest number of OFWs requesting repatriation as of data shared March 4, with 278, followed by Abu Dhabi with 246 and Dubai with 231. 

An estimated 2.5 million Filipinos work in the Middle East.