A home for him and his nine children.
For Ali Rashed Al Mazrouei, this is what constitutes a decent life in Dubai. But life has been hard and having a decent home for his family always seemed to be far from his grasp.
Desperate to seek help, the Emirati found himself picking up the phone and calling Ajman Radio’s live program “Al Rabia Wal Nas”. He was, after all, a regular caller of the show.
Mazrouie began to speak to the host about about his difficult financial situation. Because he has diabetes and high blood pressure on top of other health complications, Mazrouie finds it extra difficult to find work.
Mazrouie added that he is completely dependent on the compensation given to him by social affairs.
But all was not lost. Marzouie’s call was heard by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.
The Vice President gave orders to authorities to provide Marzouie and his family all their needs.
Marzouie case resembles struggles of OFWs
The story of Marzouie reflects the quandary of many Filipinos who have the same dream: a decent life for their families.
Many Filipinos are unable to find work in their homeland and they are oftentimes left with no choice but to live and work away from home.
We have heard many stories about the struggles of Pinoy workers abroad. On top of being lonely strangers in a foreign land, they endure hard labor.
While many are blessed to have found fair treatment from their employers, some are not as lucky. Remember the case of Joanna Demafelis, the Pinay worker in Kuwait who was found lifeless inside a freezer?
Cases of abuse against OFWs are many and not far-in-between. Their names and faces differ but the ending of their stories follow the same lines. Stories of abuse of Pinoy overseas workers are made up of the same elements: poverty and dreams of having a decent life.
Like Marzouie, many OFWs fear the day they will be rendered helpless by illnesses which would prevent them from earning much-need money. Many of them carry the burden of juggling two jobs just to have enough money to repair dilapidated houses in the Philippines, or to send siblings to school. The list is long but mirrors one thing: the struggles OFWs face in their conquest for a ‘decent life’.
It was a happy ending for Marzouie, but an ongoing story for our OFWs not just in Dubai but in places around the globe. It is up to us if we are going to hear their calls for help or shrug our shoulders, dismiss and hang up the phone.
