KUCHING: The government will continue to work hard to bring back Dewi Farisha Fazliman and her two children who have been stranded in Manila, Philippines since May 2019.
Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri said discussions have been held with Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof (minister responsible for Sabah and Sarawak affairs) and that most things have been arranged.
“I was informed by the Deputy Prime Minister’s office that cooperation has been extended,” she said.
She said this to the media after completing the 2024 ‘Back To School’ Programme in Kampung Tanjong Bako here Tuesday.
She added that her ministry is waiting for the latest information regarding the costs to be borne by the individuals involved in the overstaying issue.
Nancy stated that officers from the Prime Minister’s Department always provide her with the latest information.
“I have not received any latest information about the case.
“We will continue to cooperate on this as all the details have been done with a lot of help from relevant authorities,” she said.
Nancy also touched on the legal aspects related to the cost of overstaying stressing that this needs to be given special attention to resolve the issue.
“We need to make sure how to handle the cost of overstaying in accordance with the existing law. This is an aspect that we need to pay attention to solve this matter fairly and in accordance with the law,” she said.
On Jan 16, Sheryl Balisi Cabrera, appealed to have her daughter Dewi, 25, and her three-year-old and 10-month-old granddaughters who have been stranded for years in the Philippines returned home.
Sheryll and her children had gone to Manila to visit her sick father, however, Covid-19 struck soon after and they had to overstay in the Philippines until the lockdown was lifted.
However, due to financial factors, they had to pay a penalty due to overstaying.
This led to only Sheryl being able to go home with her youngest son, leaving Dewi with her granddaughter in the Philippines.
Sheryl said Dewi had a daughter who was born in the Philippines and that paperwork had been done so that she could declare her granddaughter a Malaysian citizen.
She said at that time, she had to pay RM10,000 each for her children to go home, however her granddaughter was not allowed to fly with them because the fine was imposed on her too even though she was still a baby.
