Honest ‘kutsero’ makes it more fun for French tourists in the Philippines

For his exemplary act of honesty, a  calesa driver (kutsero) has pulled the national government’s tourism bandwagon by several strides.

Jaime Mayor, 48, who drives a horse-drawn carriage at Rizal Park, returned a wallet containing an undetermined amount of euros to four French women who were visiting Manila’s national park Wednesday morning.

“It’s already ordinary for us to return things,” he told the Philippine Daily Inquirer. He earns a commission-based salary of P200 to P500 daily.

For his deed, Mayor will receive a Dangal ng Rizal Park Award for his honesty, Kenneth Montegrande, park spokesperson, told the Inquirer. He will also get P10,000 and a “Makabayan” (Patriot) watch with the face of national hero Jose Rizal donated by a private citizen.

Montegrande said the incident was reported to the National Parks Development Committee (NPDC) by the calesa operator, Castillan Carriage and Tour Services.

Hugs from 4 women

“I did not expect anything for returning the wallet,” Mayor said. He, however, got warm hugs from the grateful foreigners.

He narrated that the four women boarded his carriage in front of the Rizal Monument at around 10 a.m. and asked him to bring them around the park. They went to the Heritage Trail area and hope to be back in 15 minutes, he said.

While the women were moving around the park, Mayor said he had a brief conversation with the tourists, who hardly spoke English. They only talked about what country they came from, he said.

“They took photos and were sometimes giggling throughout the tour,” the driver said.

When they reached the Rizal Monument, the tourists paid him P200, Mayor said. “The tourists were in a rush to go down the carriage and accidentally left a big, thick wallet.”

“The wallet was full of money,” he said. “I ran after them as they were about to board the tourist bus.”

After returning the money, Mayor said, the women “kept waving at me with big smiles on their faces.”

One of them said she would spread the story that Filipinos are really good, he said. “Then she hugged me and I hugged her back.”

Montegrande said the honest driver will also receive a citation award from NPDC Executive Director Juliet Villegas.