Politicians and Catholic Groups Wanted to Stop Lady Gaga Concert

For some people, the sudden protests from politicians to stop the concert of Lady Gaga is a publicity stunt for the upcoming election. Some of them even wanted a court order to successfully ban the concert. There are also religious groups that went on protest last Friday. They were urging Filipinos not to watch Lady Gaga's concert on May 21 and 22. They said the songs of the pop icon is blasphemous. This is aside from the usual stage production which involves some form of nudity and lewd conducts.

The local government of Pasay City where the concert will be held already informed the organizers, Ovation Productions, to tone down their concert to avoid any problems. Representatives from the LGU will monitor the concert to ensure they will not violate any laws. "We reminded the producers of Lady Gaga's concert that the show and the event as a whole shall not exhibit any nudity or lewd conduct which may be offensive to morals and good customs," Mayor Calixto told the AFP in an interview. "Although we respect artistic and musical expressions, I won't allow anyone or any group to provide acts which may be questionable in (any) way," he added.

Members of catholic groups will also monitor the concert and will send people to watch the concert to take possible evidences of lewd performances by Lady Gaga. Former representative and Pastor Benny Abante told the media that the production company should tone down their concert. "She should not sing songs that could offend our spiritual senses or wear bikinis in front of the crowd," he added.

 

Meanwhile, Ovation Productions, the promoter of Lady Gaga's concert in the Philippines, told a local media that people have the freedom to express themselves artistically. "Those who oppose what Lady Gaga is doing are not being forced to watch the concert," he said.

Indonesia and South Korea were some of the Asian countries who successfully ban or enforce strict rules on Lady Gaga's concert. Indonesia refused to issue permit for the said concert while South Korea ban the sale of tickets to citizens under 18 years old.

Let's see what will happen in the Lady Gaga Concert. Who can stop the concert of Lady Gaga?

Panamanian Diplomat Released Video of Pamela, Argued It's Not Rape

While many politician jumped into the bandwagon defending a Filipina allegedly raped by a diplomat from Panama, all of us heard just one side of the story. The woman who complained that she was raped asked the help of Senator Tito Sotto and other organizations to help her crusade, to jail the diplomat.


Under Philippine laws, an individual convicted of rape will face life imprisonment. However, the Panamanian official was released by the authorities after the DFA issued certification that the official is covered by diplomatic immunity. He was sent back to Panama and was declared persona non grata.

The diplomat, Erick Bairnals Shcks is a member of the technical and administrative staff of the Panama Maritime Authority. Senator Sotto even launched an inquiry as to why the diplomat evaded the case and even blamed the Department of Justice for their inefficiency and failure to file appropriate actions against the diplomat.

An interview with Yahoo Asia revealed that there could be no rape. That is according to the statement given by Erick Shcks. He said the woman, "Pamela," initiated the meeting two days after they met.

Below is an excerpt from Yahoo about the interview with Shcks.

On April 23, Shcks said Pamela called him and suggested a dinner date, to which he agreed. He said that after the dinner, they went to a bar where “Pamela” supposedly ordered Martini.

“There, we talked. She started hugging, kissing me. Then we said it’s a boring place. I told her, let’s go to my place, there is something to drink, I want you to know where I live (sic),” Shcks relates. “I was very interested in the girl. I really liked her at that moment and she agreed to go with me.”

Shcks said “Pamela” made a few calls while on their way to his unit. They later arrived at his place “very happy, hand to hand, not drunk, not drugged (sic),” he said.

“She agreed to go by herself. If this is rape, if the girl is afraid and if she needs to escape, she can escape,” he said.

At his apartment, Shcks said: “Inside the room, we listened to music, kissed each other, go to bed (sic). She acted like an experienced person,” he said, noting that “Pamela” left his unit past 1 am, conscious and not under the influence of drugs.

Here's a screen grab of the CCTV in the apartment where Shcks brought Pamela.

However, the legal counsel of Pamela argued that the case could fall into "date rape." They believe that the case is strong as evidenced by court decision saying they saw probable cause on the case. Shcks wants to discredit Pamela's credibility in releasing the videos and pictures.

Let's see what Senator Sotto can say about this.

Chinese TV Anchor Claims Philippines is Part of China, Chinese Ready for War

The Chinese really insists that they have sovereignty in the South China sea. Just recently, Fu Ying, the Chinese Vice for Foreign Ministry, told a Philippine diplomat that China is ready for the worst. Though she did not mention declaring war against the Philippines, they are really up for any serious scenario. "The Chinese side has... made all preparations to respond to any escalation of the situation by the Philippine side," she said.

China Ready for War Against the Philippines

"It is obvious that the Philippine side has not realised that it is making serious mistakes and instead is stepping up efforts to escalate tensions," she added.

But the Chinese government is not alone in their claim. The media are also taking part in the campaign to intensify the resistance on Philippines' claim on the Scarborough shoal. They even resorted to erroneous reporting and misrepresent facts. A Chinese journalist recently reported that President Aquino is not eager in claiming the disputed island.

And the worst thing, the Chinese people are now claiming the Philippines as their own. They now declare sovereignty over the entire Philipine archipelago.

Video Claiming China Owns the Philippines

A TV anchor of a nationwide Chinese TV network have said that China owns the Philippines. While this is not surprising for a country under communism, it is alarming that the media is being used to instigate public opinion and support.

Hope somebody can translate this in Filipino. According to AFP report, CCTV anchor He Jia said these things: "We all know that the Philippines is China's inherent territory and the Philippines belongs to Chinese sovereignty, this is an indisputable fact."




Are we ready for this? What can our senators, congressmen and other politicians say about this issue.?

Claudine and Raymart Brawled with Journalist Mon Tulfo, Caused by Lousy Cebu Pacific Service

If the sentiments of ordinary people are not being heard in the media regarding the lousy services of local airlines in the Philippines, a celebrity couple made it to the headlines. On Sunday, Raymart and Claudine Baretto engaged in a physical altercation with veteran journalist Mon Tulfo in NAIA Terminal 3.


Based on online reports, the scuffle started when Claudine reprimanded a Cebu Pacific employee regarding their missing luggage. A man, who turns out to be Mon Tulfo, is taking a footage of the scenario. Raymart allegedly confronted Tulfo but the journalist punched him. On the other hand, Tulfo said that he was just defending himself because he was already being ganged up by the companions of the celebrity couple.

The incident resulted to a brawl. In the video below, Tulfo got contusions in the face while Claudine complained that she was kicked by Tulfo. Both parties are planning to file a case.

Meanwhile, Raymart and Claudine wanted to see the airport CCTV video footage to see what really happened and who initiated the fight. Since both parties are connected to TV Networks, Mon Tulfo on TV5 while the Santiago's on GMA 7, we expect that they will have their own story to tell.


Video of Raymart and Claudine vs. Tulfo Brawl at the NAIA








Let us hear what Cebu Pacific can say about this incident. Local air carriers should not be just after the profit. They must provide better services to the public.

Maybe its time to review the laws governing the operation of local carriers in the country. The CAB, NAIA, DOTC, and other concerned government agencies must act now to resolve these problems- overbooking, delayed flights, poor customer service, poor facilities in airports, canceled flights, etc...