Image: Instagram/@imdarylong
Singer-songwriter Daryl Ong recently took to social media to air his sentiments regarding the recent tiff between “The Voice Kids” past contestants Darren Espanto and JK Labajo. Espanto and Labajo recently engaged in a Twitter word war when Labajo allegedly made a tweet about Espanto that said, “gayness at its finest.”
Espanto hit back at Labajo, telling him to inform him if he’s found his “hacker” so people would know who the real “bakla” is. Labajo countered, saying that the screenshot of his alleged tweet was edited and has since maintained that he never made such a tweet.
Ong, on his end, took to Twitter on Oct. 23 wherein he shared a screenshot of his thoughts. He didn’t mention any names or explicitly made reference to the feud, instead speaking in generality. For Ong, the way the word “gay” was used seemed problematic, as he wondered whether being gay warranted the tag of a criminal.
“If I was the one accused of being gay, hindi siguro ako magaaksaya ng panahon mag react lalo na kung alam ko naman na hindi totoo, at kung nagkataon mang totoo, eh ano naman? Ano ngayon?” Ong said. “Pag bakla ka ba criminal ka? Does it make you less of a person? Less of an artist?”
Sorry screenshot ko nalang. Di kasya pag dito ko t-type guys haha. Di naman ako nambabasag ng trip. Saloobin ko lang po yan. pic.twitter.com/JKIriFM91y
— Daryl Ong (@imdarylong) October 23, 2018
Ong continued, “Just as being straight, does it make you more righteous? Less ‘sinful? Ganun ba yon?Natitimbang ba, nababase ba ang bigat ng kasalanan at kakulangan sa pamamagitan ng kasarian?”
Again, Ong didn’t mention anybody in his tweet, but may have been referring to Espanto and Labajo. And even if he weren’t, the year, after all, is 2018 and many would think that using the word “bakla” as a derogatory term is nothing short of blasphemous and discriminatory.
“Di ko kase talaga gets bakit hanggang ngayon na 2018 na may mga public figure parin na nagpapanggap maging lalake, tapos pag na issue, papalag-palag,” Ong said. “Ano ba binebenta mo? Talent mo o kasarian mo?”
He added, “Magpaka totoo ka.”
Ong’s tweet has garnered over 2,000 favorites, seemingly echoing the sentiments of netizens. He, however, wasn’t free of bashers as he tweeted on the same day to clarify that his earlier tweet was just an open thought.
“Hey guys, it was just an open thought. No hate here. Ang point ko is pagiging totoo sa sarili NO MATTER WHAT,” Ong wrote. “Yun lang. Wala akong inaakusahan. I just shared my perspective AYON SA NASAKSIHAN KO SA LOOB for the past 4 years.”
Hey guys, it was just an open thought. No hate here. Ang point ko is pagiging totoo sa sarili NO MATTER WHAT. Yun lang. wala akong inaakusahan. I just shared my perspective AYON SA NASAKSIHAN KO SA LOOB for the past 4 years.
— Daryl Ong (@imdarylong) October 23, 2018
The bashing didn’t seem to have waned, however, as Ong made another tweet, saying that his child had now been dragged into the issue when all he did was give an opinion.
“Nag labas lang ako ng opinion dinamay pa anak ko,” Ong said, remaining collected despite the bashing. “Wala naman akong pinangalanan. Tsk tsk. Masyadong defensive naging offensive na hehe.”
Nag labas lang ako ng opinion dinamay pa anak ko. Wala naman akong pinangalanan. Tsk tsk. Masyadong defensive naging offensive na hehe.
— Daryl Ong (@imdarylong) October 23, 2018
Meanwhile, Espanto took to Twitter yesterday, Oct. 23, to clarify that he didn’t mean to use the word “bakla” as a derogatory term and apologized if he caused any offense.
When it came to Labajo, however, Espanto only had this to say: “Sa korte nalang tayo magkita kung di ka masyadong busy. Sikat mo na eh, ‘brother.'” /ra
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