“To be wealthy and honored in an unjust society is a disgrace.” – Confucius
Today, I had a meaningful chat with a modern-day Filipino hero, “Nanay Merlie,” 70, a long-time overseas Filipino worker (OFW) who started in the Middle East and later transferred to the United Kingdom. Because she was seen as a diligent and punctual caregiver to Londoners, the London government recognized her years of effort, and she obtained permanent resident status in London.
Although she is from Torrijos town, Marinduque province, her late husband, Cesar, was from Barangay Magara, in Roxas, Palawan. He had suddenly died here in March 1996, which is why she has considered Puerto Princesa City her hometown, where her youngest son, Ray, has already established a family. She has three grown sons—Jay, Lee, and Ray—who now have their own respective families. They have built a house in Pineda Subdivision in Barangay San Pedro.
I know Ray as a competent contractual responder in emergency rescue for the city health department in the city government, while his elder siblings, Lee, is now a police officer at the national police headquarters in Camp Crame, and Jay is a migrant in Canada with his family.
Nanay Merlie narrated that Jay, Lee, and Ray were still young boys when she began to work abroad, and when their house along 13th Avenue in Cubao, Quezon City, was incidentally gutted by fire, everything they had initially saved turned to ashes. Cesar had even been a barangay councilor in their place in Cubao.
Cesar then decided to go home to Puerto Princesa City along with the three young boys to establish a living, since Cesar was from Magara, Roxas, Palawan, and was Cuyonon.
While Nanay Merlie continued working abroad, Cesar was taking care of their three young boys. Unfortunately, he got sick and eventually died on March 20, 1996.
While grieving, Nanay Merlie had to make decisions about what to do with her three young boys while she continued working abroad to support them.
With all her prayers for their well-being, she asked favors from her brother and her husband’s brother to temporarily take custody of her three sons. So, Jay was in Ifugao, Lee was in Antipolo, Rizal, and Ray was in Roxas, Palawan.
Nanay Merlie then left to work abroad so she could send remittances for their daily stipends and school expenses.
“Once I get my salary, I immediately transfer money to my three sons in the Philippines. It was hard to send money to three different places at the same time, but I had no choice,” Nanay Merlie said.
It took them many years to sustain that situation of being alone, far away, and not seeing each other.
Nanay Merlie said she was only thankful that her three sons were not trouble makers even though they were living alone in Puerto Princesa City without the direct supervision of parents.
But Nanay Merlie remains a Filipino by heart, and she asks about what is happening now with the Philippine government amidst all the accusations of bribery and corruption scandals.
She said OFWs in the United Kingdom were also affected every time there was news in Manila about corruption and irregularities.
She said the remittance centers in London would get strict if there were issues of corruption; they would limit Filipinos from sending money to the Philippines.
“Your government is corrupt, why send money,” Nanay Merlie said they were told.
She said they felt insulted, even if the money was theirs.
Nanay Merlie said: “Why does our government remain that way (corrupt)? They make it hard for OFWs to send money.”
There were many OFWs in Europe who have organized themselves to show their protests against corruption, such as those at an IT company where many OFWs were graduates from the University of the Philippines Los Baños, Laguna.
Also, “Inday Ging,” a Filipina migrant from Iloilo City in Graz, Austria, was insulted at one of the remittance centers in Graz when the Austrian refused to accept the P50,000 she was about to send to her siblings in Iloilo.
“No. Your government is corrupt. Go to another remittance center. Go away,” Inday Ging was told by the remittance center employee. So, she just transferred to another remittance center, all while feeling insulted.
There were many OFWs who had experienced similar humiliation, which those government officials and congressmen had never bothered with.
Nanay Merlie remembered when a boycott on sending remittances to the Philippines took place in September 2025 when former President Rodrigo Duterte was sent to The Hague, in Netherlands.
The OFWs in the United Kingdom joined the anti-corruption protests by not sending money for one day.
Data showed the daily average of OFW remittances was around $110 million, while personal monthly remittances totaled $3.46 billion for September 2025.
It would hurt the Philippine economy once there was a boycott on sending remittances from the OFWs around the world due to their dismay over blatant corruption.
As of late 2023, there were an estimated 2.33 million OFWs who provide large amounts of cash as support to the national economy, which the politicians continue to plunder unabatedly.
In the MIMAROPA region, as of the first quarter of 2024, there were 276,980 OFWs, a figure that includes Palawan and Puerto Princesa City.
And currently, based on the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), there were 2,393 overseas workers specifically originating from Puerto Princesa City.
Although there is no specific record of remittances from OFWs of Puerto Princesa City, remittances were distributed by the national government for the benefit of the city government level.
Local governments such as the city government of Puerto Princesa should now give recognition to the “modern-day heroes” whose years of hard work have extended for the good benefit of local residents, and of course, for the salaries and allowances of the city officials.
I am well aware that the families of OFWs do not rely on the city government for a living.
Nanay Merlie even asked me if those allegations that President Bongbong Marcos Jr. was into illegal drug use were true, which I only answered with a smile.
She said it was included in the evening news in London that President Marcos was in a state of drug addiction.
“We are ashamed every time there is bad news about the Philippines,” she said.
Now, Nanay Merlie wants to help her son Ray and grandchildren go to London once the policy becomes lenient for Filipinos to find a better future. She plans to celebrate this Christmas season in Puerto Princesa City with her grandchildren and plans to go back to London before New Year.
