New ‘tanim bala’ case recalls Nanay Gloria's ordeal

 

Nanay Gloria (in white shirt) all packed after her employer fired her following the
 'tanim bala' incident. Beside her is the late Migrant Workers Secretary Toots Ople
who was among those who helped her.

The newly reported case of an elderly Filipina being held up at the airport for allegedly having a spent bullet in her luggage brings back memories of a similar incident nearly 10 years ago involving a then 56-year-old overseas Filipina worker in Hong Kong.

While 69-year-old Ruth Adel escaped being set up by the very people hired to provide security at the Manila airport in the recent case, OFW Gloria Ortinez wasn’t as lucky. Arrested on her way back to Hong Kong on October 25, 2015, "Nanay Gloria" spent some time in detention before being rescued by a number of people, including lawyer Spocky Farolan and the late Susan “Toots” Ople, an OFW advocate who eventually became secretary of the Department of Migrant Workers.

According to the Office of Transportation Security (OTS), Ortinez was found with a bullet for a carbine rifle wrapped in a red cloth inside her hand-carried bag as she was transiting at the Manila airport on her way back to Hong Kong. She was arrested and jailed after failing to pay Php80,000 bail on a charge of illegal possession of ammunition.

PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE

A widespread outcry that followed her arrest eventually led to the dismissal of the case against her, but it came too late as her Hong Kong employer had already decided to terminate her contract.

Helped by Oplan and Farolan, Ortinez managed to return to Hong Kong and make peace with her employer, who, after a change of heart, gave her long service pay and offered her a new contract. But Ortinez eventually decided to go back to her Ilocos hometown while she contemplated on the job offer.

Ortinez called on the govt to stop the bullet-planting scam

In an interview after her release, Ortinez revealed that there were a number of foreigners who were in the airport jail with her. All had been charged with possessing a bullet, or a gun, in their luggage.

Detained at about the same time was 20-year-old American missionary Lane Michael White who was found with a bullet in his luggage as he was about to fly out after inspecting a lot in Palawan where his family had intended to build a church.

White was adamant in saying the bullet was “planted” and he got arrested only after he refused to pay P30,000 in grease money to an airport officer.

According to news reports at that time, the ‘tanim bala’ scam had been going on for two decades, and those behind it were making thousands of pesos each day. The reports said some security personnel employed “spotters” tasked to find them the "perfect" targets.

Basahin ang detalye!

For months, authorities denied that a syndicate was at work at the airport, but after Ortinez’ case came to light and the Senate began a probe into the series of bullet-planting incidents then President Benigno S. Aquino III ordered a full blown investigation.

The cases abruptly stopped after this, but it now seems, not for long.

PRESS FOR DETAILS