It was a normal commute to work for Raymond Lopez. Not being able to afford a taxi, Raymond hailed a SAPTCO bus to Olaya. He was about to sit when he noticed a wallet; a whopping 8,000 (Dh7,834) Saudi riyals was stashed in it.
He easily could’ve taken its valuable contents and left it at that, but the Filipino had a different plan in mind thanks to his values. He was about to post a photo of the ID he found in the wallet to locate its rightful owner, when a man stepped on the bus and seemed to be looking for something.
The Filipino recognized that the man is the same person on the ID. Excited to give it back, Lopez shouted, “Mudir! Buk enta.” (Sir! Your wallet)
The man was almost driven to tears. He hugged and kissed the Pinoy on the head. Lopez said he felt overwhelmed because the amount of cash in his wallet would tempt anyone to steal it.
The man was overjoyed and said the experience was heartwarming.
On Facebook, the Filipino shared why he returned the money.
“Lagi nating tandaan na may mga taong pinag-ipunan ang perang ‘yun mapadala lang sa kanilang mga pamilya, kaya kung makapulot kayo at may chance naman na maibalik sa may-ari gawin ninyo rin ha.”
The experience is something that Lopez will never forget, saying that: “I will never forget ‘yung kanyang mga mata na namumula, hinintay n’ya pa ‘yung bus paikot kung san s’ya bumaba at umaasa na may nakapulot sa wallet n’ya.”
Lopez also shared that everyone goes through money problems. He said that it would differ greatly if one finds a solution through his own effort without taking advantage of other people or relying merely on luck.
“Kung makakita ka o matulad ka sa ganitong sitwasyon ‘wag na ‘wag kang matutukso sa pera o anumang materyal na bagay sa halip gawin natin kung ano ang dapat at tama,” the Filipino said.
Before Lopez alighted the bus, he received the smiles and praises of the passengers. He felt even more thrilled when the bus driver told him, “Kulo Filipin mara kwayes.” [The Filipinos is a group of good people.]
Meanwhile, netizens are praising him for his goodwill and hoped that more people will emulate what he did. As of posting, the story has been shared over 14,000 times.
Lopez said that he did not do the act to be popular. “I don’t mind. Sakin it’s not a big deal. I’m just doing the right thing,” he told The Filipino Times.
He said nothing can be compared to the joy that one can share in life.
“Maybe that is my purpose, to inspire. ‘Yun kasi moment sa buhay natin na di mababayaran. Masaya lang ako sa mga comment. Hindi lang naman ako gumagawa noon. Just doing the right thing,” he added.
Lopez even admitted that he got emotional over the encounter, too: “Yung pag hug niya sakin, doon ako napaluha na what if ako yung nawalan.”
At that time, he was not sure if he needed to say thank you to those who praise him. For him, he is only doing the right thing.
“Ayoko isipin na isang bayani ako, sikat ako, maraming humahanga, I dont know If I’m going to say thank you to them. Ginawa ko lang ‘yung tama. Ang pagtulong at malasakit kasi dapat wala kang inaantay na kapalit, just always do the right thing,” he said.
