How Vicky pacifies combative guests

Vicky Morales

Vicky Morales redefines what being a woman of substance and grace is. She’s like a breath of fresh air on our TV screens. Even when she’s reporting sad or bad news, the veteran broadcast journalist radiates positive vibes, which give viewers hope that tomorrow will be a better day.

After being a “genie” in her well-loved program, “Wish Ko Lang,” this time around, Vicky is the “Ate ng Bayan” in the reality-drama program, “Ilaban Natin ‘Yan!” (Saturdays after “Tadhana” on GMA 7).

The show gives new flavor to “Serbisyong Totoo” through a traveling confessional called “Palaban Express”—a modern jeep that will go around various barangays, so Vicky can come to the rescue of warring folks.

The show then features the most interesting stories, which will then be brought to life by Kapuso actors. It will also employ resource persons to help in resolving the problem.

Ordinary Filipinos can definitely relate to the issues that will be tackled, such as social media and gaming addiction, teenage suicide, sibling rivalry, inheritance disputes, juvenile delinquency, child support, custody battles and adultery.

With Vicky’s charms, she can soften the heart of even the toughest bully. She will do a Sun Tzu as she shows us how “the art of war” is mastered.

Here’s my chat with Vicky:

What excites you and makes you nervous about your new show?

I’m nervous about having to say goodbye to a beautiful program that Filipinos have come to love. I will miss reuniting family members and giving away scholarships and “pangkabuhayan” packages.

But I pray that the viewers who have stayed faithful to “Wish Ko Lang” all these years will join me in this new journey and grow to like the show. This is going to be very different from what I had been doing. In fact, nine out of 10 people tell me hindi ako bagay sa role.

But this makes it even more exciting for me because I thrive on challenges. After 16 years, I will be hanging my fairy wand, and rolling up my sleeves to play referee. Kumbaga, from “fairy godmother” to “referee-godmother.”

How will you pacify the combative participants in your show?

It’s anything goes in the show, and you never really know how strongly the other person will react to certain accusations. I will set the tone and talk to both sides with respect. But I will also put my foot down if I feel things are going out of hand.

In some cases, I find that after people vent all their ill feelings towards each other, it may help to look back at the kind things they have done for each other in the past, instead of dwelling on the hurtful things.

You are always so poised. Any “wa poise” moments you’ve had?

Oh yes, definitely. I’ve tripped on audio cables and landed on all fours in front of a VIP crowd. The funny part is that everyone who saw me in action looked the other way so as not to embarrass me—but I knew deep inside they wanted to laugh out loud.

Then, there’s this other time when I felt the urge to pee right before reporting live from an army camp in North Cotabato. The only toilet I could find was in a long-abandoned men’s room with no water supply, and it looked like 50 people had used the bowl before I did. Not to mention there was a giant frog staring at me in the middle of it all. I kept praying the frog wouldn’t leap towards me, otherwise it would have been a total disaster.

What’s your most memorable interview?

It’s tough to pick just one. But I find that my most memorable interviews are those with people who are real and refreshingly honest, passionate, and are comfortable showing their emotions.

Miriam Defensor-Santiago will always be the queen of soundbites. I also remember my interview with Ka Roger Rosal, leader of the CPP-NPA, which felt like it was straight out of an espionage film.

We met our contact near GMA, and he collected our cell phones and had us remove the batteries. Our final destination was not disclosed to us, and we were blindfolded for a portion of the trip.

We only got out of the car when we reached a secluded area somewhere in Quezon or Bicol. We walked through grasslands until the sun came down, and then in front of an abandoned bahay kubo, we finally saw Ka Roger.