CEBU, Philippines - The Cebu City Prosecutor’s Office indicted a mother for depriving her daughter and grandchildren of what is rightfully theirs.
Prosecutor Eulogio Borres Jr elevated the criminal case for violation of Republic Act 7610 or child abuse against the grandmother, Cristina (not her real name), before the court and recommended P24,000 for her temporary liberty.
The complainant of the case was her own daughter, Jill (not her real name), a resident of Don Pedro Cui St., Cebu City.
Jill said her husband Richard was deployed to Kuwait as a waiter in 2004.
When her husband was working abroad, he sent financial support for her and their two children.
Jill said she discovered that her mother received money from her husband in the amount of P13,000 while she only received P7,000.
She alleged that the money sent by her husband and received by her mother was supposedly for her and their children.
Aside from the financial concerns, Jill said her mother spread rumors about her alleging that she had an affair with another man. She said this was the reason why her husband stopped sending her money and sends it to her mother instead.
In her counter-affidavit, the accused said that her daughter’s allegations do not constitute child abuse.
She said she never spread rumors to her son-in-law, Richard, saying that as much as possible, she wanted them to stay as one family.
“The only reason why I wrote to him is to be updated of his family’s whereabouts, particularly complainant’s plan to move out of the house, and the debts to respondent’s aunt in Catmon,” she said.
The accused likewise denied receiving P13,000 and P10,000 from Richard but admitted that from December 2010 to July 2011, Richard gave her P7,000 per month except for a month when she just received P4,000.
She said she only asked for money to pay for their electric bills as the complainant and her children were living with her.
The accused added that she never used the money to pay for her debts because she doesn’t have any.
In her reply, the complainant said her mother’s allegations were “pure denials” because it was not supported by evidence.
Jill denied her mother’s allegation that she owes her husband’s aunt and denied that she and her children were living with the accused.
Borres ruled that the allegations of the accused were denials that can be threshed out in a full-blown trial before the court. (FREEMAN)