Philippines: Honest airport worker returns cash twice in a row
Honest airport worker handed over $1,381 in August, $1,440 in July
Manila: Aviation officials in northern Philippines honoured a maintenance staff for turning over an unattended cash to authorities — twice in a row.
An announcement made on Monday (August 14) by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP), identified the trustworthy maintenance worker as Alexander Nuñez, who is posted at the Cauayan Airport in the province of Isabela, about 400 km north of Manila.
It was the second time in as many months that Nuñez handed over unattended cash.
The more recent one is a luggage cart at the airport's parking lot on Sunday in which Nuñez discovered a wallet containing Php78,595 ($1,381) and some dollar bills.
He handed the wallet over right away at the airport's “Lost and Found” area.
Owner comes back, retrieves wallet
According to CAAP, the owner was able to retrieve the wallet the same day after approaching the Security and Intelligence Service division.
Nuñez was the same employee who discovered an unattended envelope on a luggage cart in July containing a mobile phone, critical documents, and Php82,000 ($1,440.78) in cash inadvertently left by a woman.
Authorities were able to locate the owner and restore the items to her thanks to the papers found in the luggage.
"His (Nuñez) consistent actions reflect a pattern of behaviour that goes above and beyond the call of duty, setting a shining example for his colleagues and the community at large," CAAP said in a statement to the Philippine News Agency (PNA), commending the worker's honesty.
It added, “The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines takes immense pride in employees like Mr Alexander Nuñez, who uphold the principles of honesty and integrity that are essential to maintaining a strong and trustworthy aviation environment.”