The contractual liability of an employer to pay sickwage allowance to a seafarer who suffered illness or injury during the term of his contract is governed by the provisions of Section 20(B)[3] of the Contract, viz.: SECTION 20. COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS xxx B. x x x xxx 3. Upon signoff from the vessel for medical treatment, the seafarer is entitled to sickness allowance equivalent to his basic wage until he is declared fit to work or the degree of permanent disability has been assessed by the company-designated physician but in no case shall this period exceed one hundred twenty (120) days. For this purpose, the seafarer shall submit himself to a post-employment medical examination by a company-designated physician within three working days upon his return except when he is physically incapacitated to do so, in which case a written notice to the agency within the same period is deemed as compliance. Failure of the seafarer to comply with the mandatory reporting requirement shall result in the forfeiture of his right to claim the above benefits. x x x xxx Arbit complied with the requirements for post-employment medical examination under this Section. He reported at the St. Thomas Diagnostic, Medical and Dental Clinic, Inc. on the day following his repatriation. He was declared x x x UNFIT for sea duty by no less than the company-designated physician in a medical certificate dated January 28, 1999. He was thus unfit until his death on December 29, 1999. Fifth. Petitioner contends that the NLRC did not err when it did not award disability benefits to Arbit due to misrepresentation. The NLRC affirmed the factual finding of the Labor Arbiter which was based on the following: 1) in his application for shipboard employment, Arbit ticked NO beside the question ANY PREVIOUS ILLNESS;[28] 2) in his employment history, he did not state the name of his last employer with whom he executed a Release and Quitclaim, dated September 26, 1997, in consideration of the illness he suffered on board his vessel of assignment; and, 3) in a medical certificate issued by the Metropolitan Hospital on July 23, 1996, Arbit was diagnosed to have hypertension, coronary artery disease and heart failure. The Labor Arbiter ruled, viz.:

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