THE WRITER of the Philippine Daily Inquirer’s April 3 editorial (“Lesson from Willie”) obviously did not catch the March 12 episode of “Willing Willie,” and relied solely on the YouTube upload, or worse, on knee-jerk reactions from those who already hate Willie Revillame to the core. Otherwise, he or she would have been more circumspect in reaching conclusions of child abuse against the TV host.
The lawyers are saying that there’s no child abuse at all because 6-year-old Jan-jan does not reveal any signs of trauma from this TV appearance.
In fact, he even returned to the show to explain his and his parents’ side on the controversy. Jan-jan is said to have performed the same dance routine in the “Little Mr. SM” contest recently, and nobody raised a furor over his display of dancing skills, which was all that he wanted to do in his March 12 appearance on “Willing Willie.”
Revillame may be off-putting and boorish at times, but being a regular viewer of “Willing Willie,” I can attest that the last thing he wants is to hurt or abuse anyone. In fact, you would feel his compassion for the poor and the needy. He has given scholarships to not a few contestants who have stopped schooling due to financial problems, and he has even given a break to contestants whose talents he genuinely appreciated.
Like the lawyers, I believe Jan-jan was not a victim of child abuse, nor can his dance routine be considered lewd. Jan-jan bested 3,000 others who auditioned for the chance to appear in the show, and he was crying while he danced not because he was forced to do something against his will, but because he was afraid of a very tall basketball player who he thought was a kapre.
Let’s stop the Willie-bashing and allow him to help the needy and the disadvantaged people through his TV program. Seeing the faces of the hundreds of people who watch his TV program daily as part of the audience, they are genuinely happy to see Willie. The editorial writer obviously does not like Willie, pure and simple, and refuses to believe that he is well-loved by many people.
—JASMINE ASUNCION,
jaz.asuncion.1980@gmail.com