House Deputy Majority Leader Erwin Tulfo publicly acknowledged his past as an undocumented worker in the US, a status commonly referred to as “TNT” in Filipino, meaning “tago nang tago” or “hiding.”
Tulfo, a representative of the ACT CIS party-list, said he took this path to support his family during difficult financial times.
These admissions came amid online allegations of fraudulent identity, which Tulfo attributed to political attacks.
“I didn’t do anything wrong! I went to America to feed my child and send them to school. That’s all I did. That’s the only mistake I made, I became an undocumented worker. That’s true. I tried everything. I think any father would do the same thing,” Tulfo said on his social media program “Punto Asintado Reload.”
“If I had money, I wouldn’t have gone, I wouldn’t have left… There’s a reason why people leave… I worked 12 to 16 hours a day for 10 years,” he added, tearing up.
“I only did that to feed my children, to lift my children out of poverty. If you think that’s a crime, then I’m guilty. But this is all I can say, I didn’t break any laws in our country. I didn’t deceive anyone, not a single Filipino. Even in America when I was there, I didn’t scam any Filipinos or Americans,” Tulfo said.
Tulfo attributed the attacks on his credibility to his high ranking in recent surveys for preferred Senate candidates.
“That’s why they’re attacking me because I’m number one in the survey,” he said.”
