Senator condemns arrest of OFW over ‘tanim bala’

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Manila—Senators Nancy Binay, Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., Ralph Recto, and Cynthia Villar condemned the arrest of Gloria Ortinez, the Overseas Filipino Worker (OFW) who was arrested at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) for allegedly carrying a bullet in her luggage.

Sen. Villar does not think that Ortinez is guilty of the accusations against her as she has been a nanny for 13 years in Hong Kong.

“Kapag yaya ka ba, makikialam ka sa bala? I think wala sa profile niya, nagugulat lang ako (If you are a nanny, would you meddle with a bullet? I think it’s not in her profile, I’m just shocked),” Villar said in an interview with Philippine Star.

Villar stressed that Ortinez is in the country for a vacation and that she might lose her job If not allowed to fly back to Hong Kong.

“Nakakabahala na hindi tumiitigil ang patuloy na pananamatala sa mga turista, sa ating mga balikbayan, at lalong-lalo na sa ating mga OFWs (It’s alarming that the continuous abuse against tourists, our returning expatriates, and most especially on our OFWs),” said Senator Binay.

Binay believes that authorities should immediately tackle cases that involve workers abroad

Meanwhile, Sen. Marcos said that Ortinez may go through burdensome legal procedures.

“She now bears the additional burden of having to defend herself in court and the possibility of spending time in jail. This means she is still on the losing end even if she is eventually cleared of the charges against her,” Marcos told the Philippine Star.

Sen. Recto, on the other hand, said that authorities should chase the “real” criminals instead, citing a Norwegian study saying that more than 200, 000 guns are carried into the Philippines.

“Ang malaking problema ay hindi ang paisa-isang paglabas ng bala, pero ang pag-smuggle ng libo-libong baril (The big problem is not the single smuggling of bullets but the smuggling of thousands of guns),” he said.