MANILA, Philippines – Broadcast journalist Julius Babao has also spoken out after his name was dragged into Pasig City Mayor Vico Sotto’s claim that certain journalists allegedly received payment to interview Sarah and Curlee Discaya.
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| Photo courtesy: Vico Sotto (Facebook) |
Although the mayor did not mention any names, his Facebook post included a screengrab from Julius’s interview with the couple.
Julius interviewed the Discayas on his YouTube channel “Julius UNPLUGGED” almost one year ago.
Babao’s name, along with that of his former ABS-CBN colleague Korina Sanchez-Roxas, was dragged into the issue after Sotto shared a viral photo compiling screengrabs of their interviews with the couple.
READ: Korina Sanchez's camp claps back at Vico Sotto over ₱10M interview issue
Sotto’s post, meanwhile, revolved around claims that some journalists receive millions of pesos in payment for conducting interviews.
It can be read, “With these interviews again going viral, let’s look at it from a different angle… Bago tanggapin ng mga kilalang journalists ang alok para mag-interview ng Contractor na Pumapasok sa Politika, hindi ba nila naisip na, ‘Uy teka, ba’t kaya handa ’to magbigay ng 10 million* para lang magpa-interview sa akin??’”
“I know for a fact that there are many good, honest people in media who are disappointed, if not angered, at practices like this which undermine the integrity of their profession.”
“In this case, maybe they didn’t do anything technically “illegal,” but at the very least it should be considered shameful and violative of the spirit of their code of ethics. Puwede silang magtago sa grey areas: ‘hindi naman journalism ito… more of lifestyle lang… kailangan kasi ng sponsor…’ pero ’wag na tayong maglokohan.”
“They rose to national prominence as broadcast journalists/news personalities; puhunan [dapat] nila ang kanilang reputasyon at kredibilidad... at sa ganitong kalakaran, ito rin ang reputasyon at kredibilidad na pinahihiram nila sa mga corrupt kapalit ng 💵.”
“Let’s remember that corruption is systemic... it permeates into every sector of society, not just government. But we can slowly but surely break this cycle if more and more of us consistently do our part, wherever we are and whatever are position may be, one step at a time. (*not an exact figure pero alam nyo na).”
He added, “Hindi naman sa gusto kong gumawa ng bagong kaaway.. pero tingin ko kailangan din mapag-usapan ito eh. Nagkataon malakas ako nung halalan pero kung sa iba nila ginawa to? Baka wala na. Anyway. Kayo na po ang bahala sa kin.”
In a message sent to PEP, Babao denied the allegation that he received ₱10 million from the Discasya couple in exchange for interviewing them.
Julius clarified that his interview with the contractor couple was a lifestyle feature, not a news report.
“At the time and month in 2024 when the interview was made, it was a profile feature of a couple who rose from rags to riches because of their different business ventures,” he said.
“Walang katotohanang may 10 million na involved for this interview,”
“Ang layunin ng vlog ay ma-inspire ang mga taong posibleng maging matagumpay kung magsisipag lang at didiskarte sa buhay.”
"Very interesting kasi ang rags-to-riches story nila.”
Julius also pointed out that Sarah had not yet filed her candidacy for Pasig City mayor at the time of their interview last year.
Meanwhile, Sotto’s camp has yet to issue any reaction, response, or statement regarding the official pronouncement from Julius and Korina’s side.
— Noel Ed Richards, The Summit Express