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MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) commended one of its employees for an honest act, saying he is an example of a trustworthy government worker.
Rodolfo Poyaoan Jr, a DPWH administrative assistant, found a wallet beside a Land Bank ATM machine inside the agency’s head office in Manila on Tuesday, January 19. The wallet contained P10,000 and identification cards.
He returned it on the same day to the rightful owner, who turned out to be a retired military official.
“The DPWH management commends our newest good Samaritan, Mr Poyaoan. I hope that this kind of deed will further inspire us to do what is right all the time,” said DPWH Secretary Rogelio Singson in a statement.
Poyaoan said that as soon as he found the wallet, he immediately looked for IDs he could use to return it.
He was able to locate the rightful owner – Retired Brigadier General Iluminado Aragon of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).
A grateful Aragon said he must have dropped his wallet while on his way to the DPWH Legal Service for a road right-of-way concern.
Poyaoan, who earns P843 per day, said that it never crossed his mind to keep the money because it would be against the values he wants to live by.
Even small acts of honesty are important in building the integrity of public institutions, according to good governance advocates. (READ: ‘Keeping the government honest is a shared responsibility’)
Bantay.ph co-founder Happy Feraren earlier wrote for MovePH’s iSpeak:
“We need to strengthen the culture of social accountability, where everyone does their part. We must clean the air and create an atmosphere for good governance to prevail. A culture like this produces responsible active participants of nation-building and gives the power back to the people.”
Do you have other inspiring stories to share? Write about it on X! – Rappler.com
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