Thursday, July 03, 2008
Wife refuses expression of sympathy; President hands out P10T as financial aid
IKAW kuno mamatyan ug bana? (How would you feel if you lost your husband?)â€
These were the words Daisy Jane Oleo, 21, told President Arroyo yesterday. The President replied, “I know, I know.â€
When President Arroyo offered her condolences to Oleo, whose husband Angelo was on the mv Princess of the Stars, the woman vehemently shook her head and refused the expression of sympathy.
President Arroyo visited the action center at the Cebu City Sports Complex (CCSC) to check on relief operations and to condole with the victims’ families. She also distributed to 30 families envelopes containing P10,000 each as financial aid.
Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia, who also visited, asked relatives of passengers residing in the province to go back to their homes, after a nine-day wait at the CCSC.
This came with the assurance that the mayors of the different towns will take care of all their necessary papers.
Amid the search and the provision of support for victims’ families, Cebu Archbishop Ricardo Cardinal Vidal urged the government to review maritime laws.
“We strongly exhort the government and its respective agencies to undertake immediate review, update and stricter implementation of maritime laws and practices, weather forecasting, disaster prevention and rescue retrieval operation,†said Cardinal Vidal in a press statement.
But while the aid and expressions of sympathy help, what distraught families yearn for the most is certainty.
Grief
Oleo told reporters she refused to believe her husband is dead and added that he had promised to return home for her.
“Mo-uli gyud siya sa amo (He will come home),†she added.
They got married on Oct. 28, 2006. Since her husband was a seaman, they had only spent four and a half months together in their nearly two years of marriage.
Bienvenido Ouano, 61, said the aid might help his family in supporting their continued search for his daughter Annaliza, it will not take away the pain of losing her.
His voice shaking as he stared at his daughter’s picture, Bienvenido said that instead of money, he would much rather hear from his daughter, or at least receive word about her condition.
“Kung patay man or buhi, kana na lang (Just let us know if she’s dead or alive),†said Bienvenido.
Felicia, Annaliza’s mother, said they are reminded of their loss every time she and her husband go back to the home that Annaliza had built for them.
“Wherever we look, we think of her. She built our house, bought us a vehicle and put up a store for us. It pains us to see these reminders of her,†said Felicia in Bisaya.
Felicia and Bienvenido said they will not rest until they bring their daughter home.
rest or the story :
http://www.sunstar.com.ph/static/ceb/2008/07/03/news/wife.refuses.expression.of.sympathy.president.hands.out.p10t.as.financial.aid.html
