OFW Blogger

Tricycle drivers, vendors thank political detainees for relief packs

“Yung mga political detainees pa ang unang naka-alala sa aming mga nabaha, samantala yung mga dapat nakakulong na nagpapahirap sa taumbayan ay nagsasaya at walang pakialam sa kalagayan namin (The political detainees were the first to respond to needs of the flood victims, while those who are ought to be in jail are mindless of our situation),” remarked Fernando Piccoro, leader of tricycle drivers plying the streets of Sampaloc when they receive food packs from political detainees at Camp Bagong Diwa.

The political detainees at Camp Bagong Diwa made the donation to Karapatan national office. Cristina Palabay, Karapatan secretary general, said “the political prisoners were the among the first to respond to our call for donation for urban poor communities in Manila. The money came from the sales of handicrafts they make, from vegetables they produce, and gifts from their friends.”

Piccoro said the political detainees’ gesture of reaching out to poor people like them warmed their hearts, “mas marami pa talaga silang magagawa para sa katulad namin kung nasa labas sila ng kulungan” (they could do more for people like us when they are not in detention).   

“We share the sentiments of the drivers and vendors, knowing how important the money is to political prisoners themselves – to augment their one-fish-a-day food ration inside prison, to buy medicines for their ailments. But the political detainees chose to share whatever they have to those who were affected by the flood,” said Palabay. 

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