THE 14-year-old who was allegedly used as a drug mule, had left home and was living with a friend in barangay Labangon, Cebu City at the time of her arrest.
But when trouble struck, her mother, a laundrywoman, was by her side to comfort her.
During inquest proceedings at the Palace of Justice, the daughter hugged her mother, who couldn’t help but tell her “I told you so.”
“Gi-ingnan ta mo nga dili ko gusto ana. Bahala na kon mokaon ta og bisan unsa. Kapoy na kaayo ko oi. (I’ve told you before not to engage in illegal activities. I don’t care if we won’t be able to eat delicious food. I’m very tired of this.),” said the 49-year-old woman.
The mother said that she endures the hard work even while she suffers from tuberculosis and diabetes.
“Wa gyud ko nag-problema ninyo sa akong sakit. Imo gyud kong gisuway. Awa unya, gamay na lang gyud og kuwang. (I never asked for your help for my ailments. But you really disobeyed me.
Let’s see what will happen next. I’m on the verge of losing my patience),” the mother said.
The girl was enrolled in Grade 5, but her mother said the girl would often skip school.
The mother told the prosecutor that she had no idea that her daughter was engaged in the illegal drug trade after she left home.
The girl said a man, whose name she did not mention, instructed her to sell drugs.
Asked by the prosecutor how long she has been dealing, the girl told him it was one week.