IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Sandro Muhlach, Gerald Santos, others in local #MeToo movement

IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Sandro Muhlach, Gerald Santos, others in local #MeToo movement

What seems to be a local #MeToo movement has begun with celebrities—mostly male personalities—recently coming forward to speak against sexual predators populating the Philippine entertainment industry. 

The case of Sandro Muhlach ignited this, with Gerald Santos, Ahron Villena, and Enzo Almario following suit by giving testimonies on their unfortunate experiences at the hands of those they trusted in the best interest of their careers. These underscore how sexual abuse and exploitation have tragically been pervasive even on men, but have been concealed in the shadows of show business. 

But even years prior to Muhlach’s case, there were sexual harassment and exploitation involving male celebrities that surfaced and caught public attention. Among these was the case of former actor-TV host Hans Montenegro against talent manager Jojo Veloso. 

Montenegro was just 13 years old when he had accepted an invitation to go to an audition for a TV commercial role. Montenegro was with several other men in the audition. During the video tape recording sessions, Veloso—who was apparently part of the casting team—performed lewd acts on the auditionees, including Montenegro. The auditionees were unaware that the camera was on and recording the incident. 

Years later, the video made rounds in public, reaching talk shows and news programs. Unfortunately, nothing came out of the controversy. Montenegro flew to Australia at the time and left show business. 

“I was actually blamed for leaving,” he said in a 2018 interview with Philippine Daily Inquirer. “Predators always count on the fact that their victims would be too embarrassed to tell the truth… The longer the victims wait, the more they start blaming themselves.”

Montenegro, who is now an HR professional, also lamented how some even criticized him for speaking up. “They asked: ‘Why only now?’ Other people I know tried to come forward, but ended up being bullied by friends and supporters of the perpetrator.”

In the case of Muhlach, the newbie actor took an immediate action against his alleged abusers, GMA independent contractors Jojo Nones and Richard Cruz. The two allegedly molested and taught Muhlach to use illegal drugs after the GMA Gala last July 20.

Muhlach filed a complaint of rape through sexual assault and acts of lasciviousness against Nones and Cruz before the Department of Justice (DOJ) last Aug. 19. The independent contractors denied the allegations and submitted a counter-affidavit to the DOJ.

The alleged sexual abuse is also being investigated in the Senate by the committee on public information and mass media, as part of the probe into sexual abuse in the entertainment industry.

Also part of the Senate hearing was Santos, who revealed being raped by a musical director from the same network when he was just 15 years old. Santos later revealed the alleged rapist’s identity as Danny Tan. 

The singer said he filed a formal complaint at GMA against Tan years later, which consequently affected his career. Tan was terminated by the network, although this also prompted the removal of Santos from several shows and his very few guesting at the time. 

“For 19 years kineep ko lamang ito dahil sa takot ko nga po, sa kahihiyan. Hiyang-hiya po talaga ako lalo na noon dahil ‘yung grupo na nasa loob ay parang dini-dismiss lang nila ‘yung sinabi ko, na parang mag-move on ka na lang kasi kalakaran ‘yan dito,” Santos recalled during one of the hearings. 

“I was only 15 years old at that time kaya wala pa po akong lakas ng loob noon. Contestant pa lang po ako noon kaya di ko nasabi agad,” he said. 

After speaking up, Santos said he received messages from other alleged victims of Tan. Among them was former “Sugarpop” member Almario, who was allegedly raped by Tan when the former was just 12 years old. 

“It took me a while to finally take action on this issue, but now I am no longer afraid and I shouldn’t be the one living in fear,” Almario said. “I was raped and deceived by the same person who also raped Kuya Gerald.”

“To anyone else who was a victim of this person, speak up and free yourself. This wasn’t our fault; HE TOOK ADVANTAGE OF OUR INNOCENCE,” he continued, referring to Tan. “I sincerely hope [to] get justice, not just for ourselves, but for the potential victims he may be targeting and everyone he already preyed on.”

Almario joined Santos in the fight against Tan, with their legal counsel vowing to take the necessary steps to put a stop to the musical director’s alleged abuses.

Amid these unmasking of predators, Villena also came forward and spoke up on the alleged exploitation he experienced under a director. Villena said the director allegedly took advantage of him when he was just a newcomer in show business by putting the plaster on the actor himself for a love scene.

The actor said he was prompted to speak about his experience after the director—amid the sexual abuse case involving Muhlach—remarked that such harassments have long been rampant in showbiz.

Director Joel Lamangan then later confirmed that Villena was alluding to him, but denied the actor’s claims. 

These cases might just be few of the long-festering problem of sexual abuse and exploitation in the local entertainment industry. It may be a tedious process ahead for the victims, but mustering the courage to speak up is already a huge step toward justice.