PAL attendant to file raps vs partylist solon for ‘harsh words’

A Philippine Airlines (PAL) ground attendant who was allegedly berated in public by a party-list congressman last December is set to file separate complaints before the Office of the Ombudsman and the House of Representatives next week. Sarah Bonning-Ocampo said she would file civil and criminal charges on January 17 against Alliance of Volunteer Educators (AVE) Rep. Eulogio "Amang" Magsaysay, including "conduct unbecoming of a public officer or official" before Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez. Ocampo said she would also lodge on the same day an ethics complaint against the lawmaker at the House of Representatives. In response, Magsaysay — who had just arrived in Manila from Los Angeles Tuesday — told GMA News that he respected Ocampo's legal recourse and was prepared to face the charges. The incident happened on the night of December 17, 2009, shortly before the departure of a PAL flight bound for Los Angeles, California, which the lawmaker was boarding. (See: PAL ground attendant claims lawmaker berated her) Magsaysay had requested Ocampo that he be seated with his two children in the aircraft's business class section. When Ocampo explained that she cannot grant his request as all seats were taken, he allegedly shot back at the ground attendant: "Shut up, you bitch! You menopausal bitch!" The lawmaker allegedly also threatened to have Ocampo fired. “"Try me! Try me! Papasisante kita [I’ll have you kicked out]," he was supposed to have said. Ocampo admitted she was insulted by the lawmaker's words and said she skipped her work the next day because the incident bothered her so much. "I am not a dog. I am a person. I have human rights too... A lawmaker should not be a lawbreaker," the attendant explained during a radio dzBB interview last month. Protest Ocampo revealed her planned legal action during a protest rally staged by her and fellow members of the PAL Employees Association (PALEA) near the Club Filipino in San Juan City. The group was supposed to hold the rally in front of the house of Magsaysay's mother along Eisenhower Street in Greenhills but they were barred by village security from getting near. The protesters condemned Magsaysay's behavior as inappropriate for a legislator. Ocampo said she has had difficulty sleeping since then, because the lawmaker’s "harsh words" kept repeating in her head. Magsaysay admitted to GMA News “Balitanghali" that he said some bad things about the airport employee but added he had already offered an apology. The lawmaker said he was only worried for the safety of his 10-year-old and 13-year-old sons since it was their first time on a flight. The PAL management had earlier conducted its own investigation on the matter but has yet to make the results public.—Mark D. Merueñas/JV, GMANews.TV