OP, NCIP help sought for lumad leader’s return

MANILA, Philippines — The relatives of lumad leader and environmentalist Bai Bibiyaon Bigkay have reiterated their call for her to return home in Davao as they accused leftist organizations of “using” her.

In a press conference on Thursday, Bai Bibiyaon’s nephew Datu Benito Bagkay said their family wrote the Office of the President and the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples to facilitate her “rescue.”

The letter was signed by Benito and Bai Bibiyaon’s niece Anabel.

The other nieces and nephews of Bai Bibiyaon affixed their thumbmarks to the letter.

Bai Bibiyaon, who is more than 90 years old, was allegedly “not permitted” to go home despite her willingness, according to a copy of the letter dated Sept. 22.

“Bai Bibiyaon’s location was not cleared with the family and we heard she is getting sick already. Recently it was reported she got sick with the coronavirus disease and not receiving regular medical attention or not being able to be tended by her relative and own family,” the letter, which was written in a Visayan dialect with English translation, read.

In a press conference last month, Bai Bibiyaon said she knows what she is doing, adding that she is “perfectly fine.”

She accused the government of “coercing” her relatives to sign affidavits pushing for her “rescue.”