Cebuana Lhuillier suspends ads on ‘Willing Willie’, too

MANILA, Philippines—The country’s largest pawnshop chain, Cebuana Lhuillier Pawnshop, has joined three other companies that pulled out ads from “Willing Willie” television show.

In a statement posted on its Facebook page Friday, Cebuana Lhuillier said it has decided “to temporarily suspend its segment sponsorship in the said show, effective April 11, 2011, while resolution on the matter is pending.”

“While we support programs that give hope to Filipinos here and abroad, we expect our business partners to promote good values, protect children’s rights and exercise prudence in communicating to the general public,” it said.

“Willing Willie’s” March 12 episode on TV5, which featured a crying six-year-old boy while simulating a striptease as show host Willie Revillame laughed and egged him on, triggered strong rebuke from the public and government’s rights and social welfare agencies.

Cyber activists formed social media groups demanding for Revillame’s removal from the top-rating show and calling for a product boycott of the show’s sponsors, a move whose impact thus far is unprecedented in the country’s history of consumer activism.

Jollibee Foods Corporation last Saturday announced it was “holding off” ad placements of its newly-acquired Mang Inasal restaurant chain from “Willing Willie.”

Other multinational giants followed suit. On Tuesday, Procter & Gamble Philippines said it suspended advertising on the show “while the incident is being reviewed and investigated by authorities.”

Del Monte Pacific Ltd. also said it was pulling out sponsorship of the beleaguered primetime game show.

The TV network has since apologized for the episode and installed an internal ombudsman to avoid a repeat of the incident.

Cebuana Lhuillier said it has “taken note of the TV5 Management’s official statement and the corrective measures they have taken.”

“We trust that they will ensure that a similar incident will not happen again. We hope that the concerned authorities will resolve this matter soon,” the pawnshop chain said.

Oishi, which called the episode “regretful”, and CDO Foodsphere Inc. said they would continue placing advertisements on “Willing Willie”.

The Movie and Television Review and Classification Board has begun an inquiry into the issue.