Singer and presidential appointee Jimmy Bondoc defended his statement against the “biggest TV network” after receiving backlash from various Filipino artists.
Bondoc said in an interview on the radio program “Showbiz Talk Ganern” that his statement has been taken out of context and people were not able able to understand what he truly meant.
“Yung post na yun, sabi nila, ang daming tinamaan dahil madaming sinabi. Sa isang banda, totoo.
“May tinamaan daw sa fixing ng mga contest, sa sexual harassment, sa unfair labor practices, sa malicious news.
“At ang sabi ng iba ng mga concerned na kaibigan ko, ‘Bakit ang dami-dami mo namang tinamaan na sabay-sabay mo silang inaway?’” he said.
He said that he never wanted to shed light on the mentioned controversies. Rather, he said that his statements are about the network’s “unchecked power”.
“Una, hindi naman pag-aaway yun dahil wala naman tayong binabanggit na mga indibidwal. Pero iisa lang naman ang parang tumatahi sa lahat na yun ng mga isyu na yun at lilinawin.
“It is just really a very simple concept. It is unchecked power. Yun lang po. Kasi eto po, akala nila kalat kalat na tungkol sa sexual harassment, tungkol daw po sa malicious news and all that.
“Pero it is for me an issue of unchecked power,” he said.
When asked about what he meant about “unchecked power”, Bondoc replied by saying, “Wala na ho kasing magawa ang kahit sino sa mga makapangyarihang network, na kahit ano na lang ang sabihin nila, lulunukin ng mga tao katulad ko na, palagay ko, mabuting mamamayan naman ako kahit papa’no.”
He clarified that he has no personal issues with the network or any of its artists but he would just like to speak up because he believes in the freedom of speech.
“Alam ko naman pong medyo magaspang nang konti yung aking pagkaka-post. E, dahil naman po… sa pagaspangan lang, kulang pa po yun sa ginagawa ng mainstream media, sa totoo lang. Hindi ko nilalahat, pero dumami na talaga,” he said.
He also said that he doesn’t wish for thousands of Filipinos to lose their jobs.
“Sa kakaunti na pagkakilala niyo sa akin, o sa kahit na mga katulad ko po, eto po very respectful ko na tanong: sa palagay niyo po ba ako yung ganung uri ng tao na matutuwa sa kawalan ng trabaho ng mga kapwa ko Pilipino? Yun lang po,” he said.
Bondoc added that he would also not emphasize on the sexual harassment allegations within the network because it is a legal matter.
Nevertheless, Bondoc said that he still remains grateful to a lot of people within the network that helped with his singing career in the past.
“Ang gratitude, ang pasasalamat ay ibinibigay sa tao, sa indibidwal, yung mga nag-go out their way to help you, ipasok ka dun kahit may kumukontra o umaaway sa yo sa loob o may di gusto sa ‘yo. Ang gratitude po ay dun sa mga taong naniwala sa akin.
“Pero, yung maging grateful ka sa kahit na anong kumpanya o korporasyon, to the point na kahit mali pa ang gawin nila, grateful pa rin ako diyan,” he said.
