A Facebook page called “Hyein’s modeling agency” explained its side regarding the false claims alleging Miss Universe 2020 semifinalist Rabiya Mateo and her boyfriend were given V.I.P. treatment during the concert of Korean singer IU over the weekend.
The fan account earlier claimed that Rabiya and her boyfriend, Kapuso actor Jeric Gonzales, did not pay for tickets to IU’s “H.E.R.E.H.” world tour on June 1 at The Philippine Arena in Bulacan.
The FB page later informed the public that the “admin” who posted about the false claims against Rabiya and Jeric is no longer connected to them.
“We wish to inform our community that the individual (Admin) who previously posted about the false information regarding Rabiya and Jeric is no longer affiliated with this page,” it said on June 4.
“We remain committed to providing accurate and reliable content. Thank you for your understanding and continued support,” the Facebook page added.
The fan account also released a statement on Monday written in the first person point of view and addressed to the celebrity couple.
“I want to sincerely thank you for clearing out your side on the incident during IU’s concert. I deeply apologize for all the damage this may have caused you,” it said in a separate post.
“As per your clarifications, you personally bought the tickets and didn’t demand them for free. It also came to our knowledge that many other fans had the same experience of having a duplicate ticket [or] seats,” the page added.
“My mistake was posting it on this page without doing any FACT CHECK after hearing everything from the Usher [or] Staff. I acted on impulse and didn’t mean any harm to the said couple. I posted it as an awareness to my fellow [K-pop] fans who fought hard and worked hard to buy the tickets,” it continued.
“HMA is committed to making memes and edits for the [K-pop] community. We will continue to improve our posts for our community. Again, we sincerely apologize for our mistake. We hope this will help clear out the names of the said couple. Also, we want to ask the public for a favor to refrain from throwing hateful [or] negative comments at both Rabiya and Jeric,” the page said.
Rabiya also denied the rumors through a series of Instagram Stories early this week.
“The admin of this page already apologized to us. None of these is true or real. Again, we paid for our tickets. The admin took responsibility for saying she doesn’t know the usher and made the post out of hearsay,” the beauty queen said.
Rabiya also said there are laws “to protect the innocent and punish those who are guilty.”
“While others are so quick to have assumptions without getting their facts right shows how people believe what they see online. Not everything you read is true. Not everything you see is real. Not everything you hear should be posted online at the expense of other people,” she said.
“P.S. People say pano kami luminya kay Lee Min Ho, Coldplay at Ed Sheeran. Never kami nagpa-VIP2 sa mga concert,” Rabiya added.
She also shared that she and her beau “had a hard time looking for available tickets” to IU’s concert, “just like the rest” of other fans.
“Contrary to what most of you think. Walang artista-artista sa paghahanap,” the beauty queen-turned-actress said.
Rabiya disclosed that her and Jeric’s tickets to the concert cost P12,000 each, stressing that they “worked very hard to afford the tickets.” She said they had also been scammed before.
She added that they “never demanded for any VIP treatment” but acknowledged the ushers who helped them find their seats.
Facebook page “Hyein’s modeling agency” previously posted a blind item claiming it was a “first-hand gossip.”
“Sinetch itey na mag-jowang actor at beauty queen ang biglang nag-entrance sa concert ni IU at gustong manood kahit hindi naman daw nagbayad. Ang bet pa ay VIP seat pero wiz na vacant kaya hanash ang usher at secu kk find,” it said in a now-deleted post.
The page also reacted to an Instagram Story of Jeric.
“Ay, taray ng IG Story ni Koya. Nakaupo na rin pala sila finally,” it said.
Meanwhile, IU is reported to be the first Korean soloist to stage a concert at the Philippine Arena.
Concert promoter Pulp Live World said nearly 40,000 fans attended the Manila leg of her “H.E.R.E.H.” world tour in support of her sixth extended play (EP), “The Winning.”
IU also surprised Pinoys by performing Filipino band SunKissed Lola’s “Pasilyo,” adding that she “practiced” it for her Philippine audience.
The concert marks the South Korean’s return to Manila in over four years since her “Love, Poem” tour in Araneta Coliseum in December 2019.
IU is known for the songs “eight,” “People Pt.2,” “LILAC,” “Celebrity,” “Blueming” and “Through the Night,” among others.