(CMFR/IFEX) – On 29 March 2005, a local Philippine radio commentator was ordered arrested by a court as a result of a defamation suit in Davao Oriental, Southern Mindanao. Frank Gupit, an anchorman of the Manila Broadcasting Corporation-affiliate Radyo Natin, was charged with defamation for allegedly accusing a certain Neilwin Joseph Bravo of bribing “Philippine […]
(CMFR/IFEX) – On 29 March 2005, a local Philippine radio commentator was ordered arrested by a court as a result of a defamation suit in Davao Oriental, Southern Mindanao.
Frank Gupit, an anchorman of the Manila Broadcasting Corporation-affiliate Radyo Natin, was charged with defamation for allegedly accusing a certain Neilwin Joseph Bravo of bribing “Philippine Daily Inquirer” columnist Ramon Tulfo.
The defamation suit stemmed from Gupit’s radio programme, where he said that the “bribe money intended for ‘Inquirer’ columnist Ramon Tulfo may just end up in the pockets of Bravo.” Gupit made the comment in relation to an earlier piece by Tulfo linking Davao Oriental Governor Palma Gil to illegal logging in the province.
Aside from Gupit, Bravo also sued Radyo Natin manager Raul Antopuesto, who co-hosts the programme.
Asked to comment on the situation, Gupit said he was willing to stay in jail, but plans to continue hosting his radio programme from his detention cell. “We will not stop exposing anomalies in the provincial government. We will see what will be the reaction of the people of Davao Oriental,” Gupit said.
Print and broadcast journalists in the province started wearing black t-shirts in a show of solidarity with Gupit. They also initiated a fund-raising drive aimed at helping the broadcaster raise money for the required bail.
Aside from the libel suit filed by Bravo, Gupit and Antopuesto also face two libel suits filed by provincial board member Maria Consuelo Gil, the governor’s daughter, according to a report by the “Philippine Daily Inquirer”.
In the first suit, the younger Gil said the two broadcasters labeled her as “so young and yet so corrupt.” In her new complaint against Gupit and Antopuesto, she said the two broadcasters called her “dumb,” “mentally unstable,” and a “thief.”
