A FEW months ago, the big issue was the balikbayan boxes and taxing our OFWs (overseas Filipino workers) for gifts to their loved ones, which we all know are purchased through hard work, blood, sweat and tears. There was a nationwide uproar over this absolutely unkind and misplaced move.
OFWs who travel to greener pastures for better wages by force of circumstance and rarely by choice are the unsung heroes of our country. We are proud of them and we all empathize with them in the trials and hardships they must undergo to bring food to the table, send children to school, and the provisions their families need to survive. Admirable is their temerity, but sad is their plight.
The Philippine Statistics Authority 2014 Survey on Overseas Filipinos (OFWs) says the number of OFWs increased to 2.32 million in 2014—up by 1.5 percent from the previous year. Remittances from the OFWs rose to P173.19 billion in 2014 compared to P162.37 billion in 2013. These remittances are primarily for families’ basic needs and consumption. This accounts for 61 percent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product.
The contents of balikbayan boxes are presents which the workers are willing to sacrifice from their hard-earned savings to buy gifts for their loved ones. A worker interviewed on television said it took months for him to fill a whole box. Week after week, month after month, and with great love, they buy these items painstakingly waiting for bargains until the box is full and everyone has something for Tatay or Nanay.
These are not luxury items or dangerous drugs, just tokens of love to hug in replacement of the warmth of physical embraces. And to tax these goods? No wonder the whole country was indignant! The issue seemed to have died down with the general collective reaction of brutal statements.
I have always had a great admiration and respect for OFWs. Life is bittersweet. The bitter can be quite toxic even for us supposedly living “normal” lives in the solace of our homes and country. Still there is a lot of heartlessness and meanness from the surroundings and sometimes from the people we least expect.
But to the OFWs who are thrown into a country sans family and friends ransoming uncertainty, entering the fray gambling their future to reach the dream of a better life not really for themselves but for the ones left at home. Theirs is a life of martyrdom. They deserve our awe, our esteem, our highest regard. They deserve the best support the country can give them since they are major contributors to our economy. And yet, most of the time, our country fails them. The taxing of goods in the balikbayan boxes was one such an example.
That issue has drifted into thin air since it was getting more flak than applause.
Now, there is the “laglag-bala” or “tanim-bala (plating bullet)” concern. The modus to most is an extortion operation. Pay up and we will be quiet. But who would want to put a bullet in his suitcase especially for an OFW?
Just last week I was in Hong Kong and you cannot imagine the extreme measures passengers have undertaken to secure their pieces of luggage. The wrapping of baggage in the airport has become a brisk business. I was fascinated by the efforts passengers have endeavored not to be victimized by this modus operandi.
I once saw on Facebook how easily the suitcase can be opened. Armed with just a ballpen, you can puncture the zipper and voila, there is an opening, be it small enough to slip a bullet or two, or the luggage can be open to its fullest. Pieces of luggage were paraded in front of us with zippers taped to the max for fear of planted bullet.
What was most disturbing is that this infamous trade is not only alarming the traveling Filipinos but I saw foreigners likewise either having their suitcases wrapped or zippers all duct-taped. What does this say of us and our country and our governance?
Furthermore, there was a passenger before me who even had a love letter pasted on his “maleta” prepared by his children, I believe, because it said: “My Dad works hard for his family. Please do not put a bullet in his suitcase. We love our Dad and we pray God will bless you and your work, too.” Isn’t that humiliating?
While I did not tape my suitcase because I still believe in the goodness of people, my camera was quite ready to record any irregularity during inspection.
After the sights and sounds symphony in the harbor one evening, as we were discussing in Ilonggo where to have dinner, a domestic helper approached us and so happy to hear her own dialect spoken. Apparently she is from Bacolod as well. She talked about that victim who has worked for 15 years in Hong Kong. She mentioned that she knows her personally and there is no way that she would jeopardize her job with a bullet in her suitcase. She sounded quite distraught for her friend being a casualty of this nefarious new trade going on at the airport.
Another occasion was while having a quick bite of sandwich, I was seated beside another Filipina. Again, this “tanim-bala” was her hot topic. Years as a journalist have trained my ear to listen. This lady has worked in Kuwait and now in Hong Kong. If there is ever a question I would ask any OFW, it is if he or she is treated well. Praise God she has had good employers. But what unsettling were her comments that hope doesn’t spring eternal for our country. She says with all the bad news of the gift taxes and now the “isang bala ka lang (you’re just one bullet),” no matter who sits in the throne, it will still be the same. How sad, indeed! That means these people would rather be elsewhere instead of staying in their country.
Talking to these OFWs brought to mind some quotes Heneral Luna said in the movie: “May mas malaking kalaban tayo kaysa Amerikano—ang ating sarili (We have greater enemies than Americans—it’s ourselves)”.
Yes, it seems like it’s the Filipino against fellow Filipino. Maybe the time has come really for what he said: “Bayan o Saril? Pumili ka (Country or Self? You choose).” With elections coming, this is gourmet food for thought for those aspiring to be servants and bosses of the people.