A BACOLEÑO overseas Filipino worker (OFW) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia called for help, through social media, over the alleged maltreatment by his employer.
Wilmar Sayson, 27, of Barangay Handumanan in Bacolod City posted series of videos on Facebook showing his struggles in asking for help from his friends and family in the Philippines.
In his live video posted on September 25, Sayson was crying saying that he was punched by his male employer.
Sayson claimed that his employer got mad at him because a fellow caregiver is making up stories against him.
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https://www.facebook.com/wilmar.sayson.96/videos/159974544931008/
On the said video, the OFW further claimed that he was fired by his employer without paying for his salary.
"My passport is with my employer. I was about to get my salary in three days, but he never gave it," he said while crying.
On September 26, Sayson again went live on Facebook. The OFW said he was in a coffee shop where a fellow Filipino helped him to look for his agency in Saudi Arabia.
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https://www.facebook.com/wilmar.sayson.96/videos/160566584871804/
He was able to go live again while riding on a taxi going to his agency.
But on September 29, in his last video post, Sayson can be seen crying calling for help as he was arrested by the police.
"Guys, please help me. I am arrested by the police. I don't know what to do," he said.
Sayson's family in Barangay Handumanan already knew what happened to him, also through social media, though they have no update yet as to his present condition.
His mother Susan, in a phone interview with SunStar Bacolod Sunday, September 30, said they cannot contact Sayson as his cellphone was possibly confiscated by authorities in Saudi Arabia.
His mother said they already reported the incident to the Overseas Worker Welfare Administration (OWWA) in Bacolod City, yet they are still waiting for the latter's advice.
"What kind of agency is this, we have been calling them but they cannot yet tell us as to how is my son," she lamented, urging the OWWA and other authorities to help Sayson so he can be sent home safe.
OWWA-Bacolod records showed that Sayson went abroad in 2017 for a two-year contract as a household worker.
Rizza Moldes, focal person of OWWA-Bacolod, on Sunday said they already requested the Philippine Embassy in Saudi Arabia to verify the reported incident as well as check the whereabouts of Sayson.
Moldes said they made a follow up with the embassy on September 27 and 28 yet there is no update yet.
"Initially, we learned that instead of proceeding to the embassy, he went with his friend after leaving his workplace," she said, adding that the employer probably filed an absconding case against the OFW.
As to the allegation of Sayson that he was maltreated by his employer, OWWA has yet to wait for the response of the embassy on its request for verification.
"We will have to validate it and provide legal assistance if is necessary," Moldes added.
The videos of Sayson have gone viral online. Netizens also took to social media to express their concern to the OFW.