“Sa mga politiko na nagsasabing bayaran ang mga dumalo sa mga rally, hindi po ba napakababaw ng tingin niyo sa inyong constituents para bansagan silang mga bayaran?”
Filipino singer Bituin Escalante expressed statement this in a video on Twitter in response to claims that campaign rally participants in Cavite were paid P500 each.
Hindi kami bayaran. pic.twitter.com/SfA5JVDKyg
— bituin escalante (@gobituin) March 7, 2022
Escalante, however, did not mention any name of politician in the video.
“Sa mga politiko na nagsasabing bayaran ang mga dumalo sa mga rally, hindi po ba napakababaw ng tingin niyo sa inyong constituents para bansagan silang mga bayaran? Hindi po ba kayo ang problema kapag yun ang nangyayari dahil hindi niyo natutugunan ang mga pangangailangan ng inyong mga constituents? Isip-isip lang po tayo,” she said.
Escalante then said that participants of Vice President Leni Robredo’s campaign rallies are not paid to attend.
Robredo is running for president with Senator Kiko Pangilinan as her running mate.
“Wala pong bayaran sa mga rally ni Leni. Pumupunta po kami dun nang kusa, para sa bayan,” she said.
Escalante wrote on her tweet: “Hindi kami bayaran.”
As of writing, Escalante’s video garnered over 39,700 views, more than 6,100 likes, over 1,100 retweets and 143 quote retweets.
The veteran singer said she received criticisms after her video. She tweeted another short video and clapped back at critics.
“Para po don sa mga na-trigger na tumatawag sa ‘kin ngayon na laos or bituin walang ningning, e hindi na po kami nasasaktan sa ganyan dahil nabubuhay po kami ng marangal, nagbabayad po kami ng buwis. Kapag nahuhuli sa pagbayad ng buwis, nagbabayad ng multa,” Escalante said.
“At hindi po ko nag-iisa. Marami po kaming sumusunod sa batas. Maraming Pilipino ang sumusunod sa batas. At naghahanap na maglilingkod samin na sumusunod din sa batas. Para sa bayan,” she added.
— bituin escalante (@gobituin) March 7, 2022
Meanwhile, Escalante’s fans and other Filipinos also lauded the “Ako Na Lang Sana” singer for speaking up about the bribery allegations.
“Yes, hindi ka bayaran, still you chose your integrity and clean conscience intact. We salute you Ms. Bituin,” one Twitter user said.
“Itong ang tunay na Bituin, maningning ang paninindigan,” another user tweeted.
What happened before
In an interview with DZRH on Saturday, March 6, Rep. Jesus Crispin “Boying” Remulla (Cavite 7th District) claimed that a candidate paid people P500 each to attend a campaign event held in General Trias City, Cavite.
Remulla also claimed that the individuals were allegedly wearing pink uniforms. They also had a stage, T-shirts and other campaign paraphernalia.
“Ang uniporme nila, syempre pink. Halatang halata. May mga jeep, may takip ‘yung karatula kasi hindi naman talaga taga-roon,” he claimed.
While he did not mention names, the Robredo-Pangilinan camp held a large campaign activity called “Cavite Grand People’s Rally” in General Trias City last Friday.
Based on reports, an estimated 47,000 supporters attended the gathering.
Robredo’s spokesperson Barry Gutierrez denied the bribery claims in a separate radio interview.
“Yung pagpunta doon sa mga venue, talagang ‘yung mga tao ay naglalakad, talagang sila ang nagkukusang magpunta diyan. Walang kahakot-hakot sa mga rally na ito,” Gutierrez said.
The Robredo People’s Council-Cavite, one of the organizers of the event, also dismissed Remulla’s accusations as not true.
“Ito ay purong ‘bolunterismo’—walang hinihinging kabayaran at kapalit kundi ang pag-asang maibabalik ang matino, mahusay at may resibong pamamahala sa bayan,” the group said in a statement.