MANILA - The mother of a two-year-old boy allegedly mauled to death by his guardian parents arrived home in Davao City on Saturday to mourn her son.

Initial investigation showed that the toddler was beaten to death by guardians Sarah Jane Alcain and husband Ronilo, who got angry after the child urinated in his pants.

Erlinda Cagalitan, the child's mother, works as a cashier in Bahrain.

Relatives supported Cagalitan as she wept bitterly over son's casket.

The mother declined interviews, asking for more time to grieve in private. Her relatives, meanwhile, called for justice for the slain child.

Alcain and Ronilo are currently detained for child abuse.

President Rodrigo Duterte on Thursday said the victim's fate is also suffered by many children who are entrusted to relatives so that their parents can work.

"Marami iyan, 'yung mga anak nila iniiwan lang sa mga kapatid, pinsan and they work their ass to death. Pagdating dito, napurnada ang pagod nila either because their children are not par with their expectations na makatapos, malulong sa droga. These are the things we have to balance," he said.

The President said he will discuss the matter with the Department of Social Welfare and Development after he returns from the APEC Summit in Lima, Peru.