Body of OFW killed in Jordan arrives home

TUGUEGARAO CITY, Philippines – Overseas Filipino worker (OFW) Felma Maramag came home to Peñablanca town in Cagayan province already a corpse.

It was a tragic homecoming on Sunday, February 19, for Maramag’s family, who told media she was supposed to come home next month as her employment contract in Jordan was set to expire.

Maramag left her 15-year-old daughter Angelica and her 68-year-old mother Natividad Dalupang. She and her husband had separated even before she went abroad.

“Siya na lang po ang bumubuhay sa aming dalawa ni Angel. Siya ang nagbibigay ng kabuhayan namin. Buwan-buwan nagpapadala ‘yan ng allowance namin, allowance ng anak niya. Kasi wala na rin akong asawa, namatay na,” Dalupang told Rappler.

(She was the only one supporting the two of us. She was our breadwinner. Every month she would send home our allowance, the allowance of her daughter. My own husband is already dead.)

Angelica said she was still able to talk to her mother a couple of days before two Jordanians killed Maramag on February 5.

Angelica said her mother, in that call, told her to always be a good girl and to always take care of herself. She added that Maramag was only forced to work abroad to support her studies.

“Sobrang sakit. Mahalaga siya sa ‘kin. Dalawa na lang kami. Ngayon, nag-iisa na lang ako,” Angelica said. “Excited [akong makita siya], pero makikita ko siya, bangkay na.”

(It’s so painful. My mother is very important to me. It was just the two of us. Now, I’m all alone. I was excited to see her again, but it turns out, I’d see her already a corpse.)

Gruesome killing

Maramag’s brother Apolinario Dalupang Jr said he was only informed of his sister’s fate on February 8, by a concerned OFW in Jordan.

Officials of the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) also gave more details to Dalupang about the killing.

He said his sister was only dragged into the conflict between her employer and two part-time Jordanian house helpers, which stemmed from a misunderstanding about wage issues.

The two Jordanians allegedly killed Maramag’s employer, and also reportedly smashed Maramag’s head with a hard object.

Appeal to government

Maramag’s family is now asking the government for help in finding a source of livelihood.

“Siya lang ang inaasahan namin pero gano’n naman ang nangyari sa kanya. Ngayon, gusto ko sanang may ibigay na pangkabuhayan na dumating sa amin, kay Angel, kasi wala na, wala nang mamumuhay sa amin,” her mother said. 

(She was the only one we were depending on, but that’s what happened to her. Now, I want the government to assist us with a source of livelihood, for Angel, because our breadwinner is gone.)

Maramag’s family also said she told them that she had more than P200,000 in the bank, her savings from 4 years of working as an OFW. They hope the government can help them withdraw the money for the benefit of Maramag’s daughter.

An OWWA official told Rappler they will coordinate with the family regarding the savings. – Rappler.com