06/08/2025
𝗝𝗨𝗦𝗧𝗜𝗖𝗘 𝗙𝗢𝗥 𝗚𝗘𝗟𝗢
Sobrang naiyak ako sa kwento ni Gelo.
Dion Angelo “Gelo” Dela Rosa was only 20. He died of leptospirosis after wading through floodwater for days, looking for his father. His dad was arrested for playing kara y krus, a coin toss game. Yes, a very old law na hanggang ngayon ginagamit para hulihin ang mahihirap.
Pero this isn’t just a story of a son trying to save his dad. This is a story of a government that keeps letting people die.
The police never told the family where his father was. No call. No contact. No effort. While Gelo searched, waist-deep in flood, the government stayed silent. The drainage systems failed. The flood warnings failed. The health systems failed. The police failed. And now Gelo is dead.
Sabi nila, legal daw yung arrest. Na may due process. Na aksidente lang yung pagkamatay. Pero let’s stop lying to ourselves. This is what a broken system does. You jail a man for a coin toss, and his son dies trying to find him. After that, you give the family some funeral cash and act like nothing happened. You move on, but they never will.
Bakit ganito? Online sabong and illegal casinos thrive. Walang nahuhuli. Pero a father from a poor barangay gets locked up for a backyard game. Tapos the family has no idea where he is. They only found out after Gelo died.
You don’t jail the powerful for corruption. Pero sa mahirap, full force lagi ang batas. You don’t fix flood systems, pero ang bilis niyong mang-aresto. You let entire communities swim in sewage, then wonder why people get sick.
Gelo’s death wasn’t an accident. It was the result of every broken promise. Every unfixed pump. Every uncaring policy. Every shortcut taken. Every poor family ignored.
You failed. And now a son is dead, and a father is grieving behind bars.
This shouldn’t be normal. Pero sa bansang ‘to, sanay na tayong namamatay ang mahirap habang nagbubulag-bulagan ang may kapangyarihan.
You owe Gelo more than funeral assistance. You owe him justice.