Sorry for using ‘L’-word

THE MTRCB reprimanded the new show of Kathryn Bernardo and Daniel Padilla.

The “L”-WORD got them in trouble.

After only five days on the air, the ABS-CBN soap opera “Pangako Sa ’Yo,” which premiered on May 25, landed in hot water, incurring the ire of the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB), for the use of the Filipino word for “lust.”

Representatives of the primetime series, which topbills teen idols Daniel Padilla and Kathryn Bernardo, were invited to meet with members of the board’s hearing committee on Tuesday.

After the meeting, the hearing committee, through MTRCB Chair Eugenio “Toto” Villareal, related that the show’s reps “admitted that there was a lapse and apologized for it.”

The show’s production team promised to submit to the board “by June 17” a resolution, outlining “concrete steps to avoid repetition” of the same mistake.

As was “determined” during the meeting, the show will undergo “three months of close collaboration, monitoring… self-regulation and consultation with the MTRCB, if needed.”

The controversy stemmed from a line of dialogue in the program’s May 29 episode, wherein a character (played by veteran actress Pilar Pilapil) uttered the Filipino word for libido, a term deemed “vulgar” by the board and unfit for primetime viewing.

The objectionable scene was aired around 8:33 p.m., recalled Villareal.

Villareal told the Inquirer that “the use of the strong Filipino term for lust and its context,” which pointed to the “sexual objectification” of a female character, “went beyond the program’s Parental Guidance (PG) rating.”

Safe harbor period

The time slot was “well within the safe harbor period for children (6 a.m. to 9 p.m.), under the Children’s Television Act of 1997,” he remarked.

A PG rating, Villareal pointed out, “means that the audience can include very young viewers.” The scene in question, the chair said, “can easily compromise the innocence and development of young people.”

The issue also involves “respect for women,” the board chief noted. “The Magna Carta for Women requires that our networks steer clear of any prejudicial or discriminatory depiction of women in media.”

Villareal asserted: “We enjoin all networks to wear the parent’s hat and diligently observe the safe harbor period for children… We also remind them to practice self-regulation and observe their given ratings.”

Kane Choa, head of ABS-CBN Corporate Communications, issued a statement: “ABS-CBN apologizes for the strong language used in… ‘Pangako Sa ’Yo.’ We recognize our responsibility to our viewers and will work closely with the MTRCB to prevent it from happening again.”

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