“Dili man ko love nimo daddy! Maluoy man ka!”
(You don’t love me, daddy! Have mercy!)
An amateur video showing a five-year-old girl crying and clinging to her departing OFW father at the Davao International Airport has gone viral on Facebook.
Posted on November 12 by Icar Yves Buchorno Perdido, the kid’s mother, the video has been viewed 8.6 million times, shared over 268,000 times, and viewed by over 8 million Facebook users as of posting time.
Local reports said the kid’s father was returning to Maldives where he works as an assistant manager in a restaurant.
Perdido said her children, including Vaniah Ayn Ayn (the kid in the video) have since recovered from their father’s departure, thanks to their frequent conversations through the internet.
“Kahit na malayo na yung daddy nila, consistent yung video chat namin, yung video call. Lagi siyang tumatawag dito sa amin,” she said.
Two days after, Perdido posted a photo of her with her children, Ayn and three-year old David, asking all OFWs to stay strong for their children.
Netizens have sympathized with the Perdidos, saying that leaving their families to earn more money abroad is one of the hardest thing to do.
Ayn is just one of the millions of children left by their parents while they work abroad.
According to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), there are about 2.4 million OFWs in 2015, which is 100,000 higher than the 2.3 million tallied in 2014.
