Lizza Nakpil, Rivermaya's former manager, may face imprisonment after allegedly naming herself as the author of the song "Posible."
The document in question is the "Certificate of Copyright Registration and Deposit" for "Posible." The document, already circulating online, names Nakpil as both the copyright owner and author of the Rivermaya song.
PEP (Philippine Entertainment Portal) visited the Copyright Office in The National Library in Manila last January 14, and confirmed the document's authenticity. Records showed that Nakpil also registered Rivermaya's "Liwanag sa Dilim" on September 10, the same day she registered "Posible."
The document was first posted online by Dennis Garcia last January 11 in response to allegations that presidential aspirant Gilbert Teodoro did not legally arrange to use the song in his TV ad. In a PEP (Philippine Entertainment Portal) interview, Garcia said he bought the rights of the song from Nakpil, who showed him its certificate of copyright.
Nakpil's authorship of the song, however, is being contested. Warner Music, Blanco's record label, said in a statement released on January 8 that Blanco remains as the song's composer.
Nakpil's registry of the song's authorship, therefore, may be a violation of the law.
COPYRIGHT REGISTRY. Michelle Flor, a copyright examiner of the Copyright Office, said she remembers that Nakpil did not personally file the certificate in question.
"Hindi yata siya personally pumunta, e. Basta nag-comply ka sa requirements, napirmahan, puwedeng pa-file. Pa-send through na lang messenger o ano... Hindi na kailangan ang actual person ang nag-susubmit," Flor told PEP in an interview last January 14.
The requirements needed to file a certificate of copyright include two copies of the duly accomplished application form, two copies of the work to be copyrighted, a registration fee of P200, and two pieces of P15 documentary stamps. The application form must be duly notarized.
Flor said Nakpil complied with all the requirements, so the copyright office accepted her application of copyright for "Posible" and "Liwanag sa Dilim." The certificates of copyright for the two songs were issued a month later.
"Kapag nag-comply ka dun sa requirements, tatanggapin namin yun, i-issue namin yung certificate mo. Ganun lang 'yon," Flor said.
WAIVER FROM THE AUTHOR. The information required in the application form includes the name and address of the copyright owner, the title of the work submitted, date the work was finished, and the date it was published or sold to the public.
Aside from the name of the copyright owner, the application form also asks for the name of the author who made the work. If the name of the claimant of copyright is different from the name of the author of the work, an additional "waiver of copyright ownership" must accompany the application form. The waiver must also be duly notarized.
Flor said the Copyright Office had no problem accepting Nakpil's application for copyright because she indicated in her application form that she is both the copyright claimant and the author of "Posible" and "Liwanag sa Dilim."
"So, hindi ka hihingan ng waiver pag ganun. Ang fi-nile niya, siya yung author, siya rin yung copyright owner so hindi na siya hihingan ng waiver," Flor said.
Flor added that it is not the duty of the Copyright Office to investigate whether the information provided in the application forms is true. It is enough that application forms submitted are duly notarized.
"Yung getting information outside dun sa pinrovide niya hindi na namin function yun. Kaya nga yung sa likod [ng form] may affidavit siya, magre-rely kami dun sa information na ipo-provide sa amin. Hindi kami compelled to go beyond the information na ibibigay nila," Flor said.
Flor further explained that the copyright certificate does not mean ownership is granted to the claimant. She said the copyright is automatically earned by any author after a work is finished.
"Contrary sa understanding ng iba, ang copyright, hindi yung pagre-register dito ang nagga-grant ng copyright ownership. Yung act of creation mo ng isang work yun yung nagga-grant ng copyright ownership, so ang ginagawa mo dito nagke-create ka ng public record ng copyright mo," Flor said.
Since Rico Blanco was the song's composer, Flor's statement affirms that he still retains ownership of "Posible."
POSSIBLE PERJURY. PEP sought the opinion of lawyers from the Belo Gozon Elma Parel Asuncion & Lucila (BGEPAL) law firm to determine whether the alleged acts of Nakpil constitute a possible violation of the law.
According to the lawyers whom PEP spoke with, the Intellectual Property Code ("IPC") states that the owner of a copyrighted work is the composer or author unless the work was made during the course of employment, was commissioned, or was assigned in accordance with certain conditions.
The BGEPAL lawyers likewise stated that if none of the above conditions apply and Nakpil indeed signed and provided false information in a sworn document, like a duly notarized affidavit, upon registering the copyright to the song without the requisite waiver, then she may be held liable for perjury. Under Article 183 of the Revised Penal Code, should a person be found guilty for committing perjury, the penalty is "arresto mayor in its maximum period to prision correccional in its minimum period".
A statement from Warner Music released on January said Blanco has not waived his rights to "Posible" to another person.
"Rico Blanco is the composer and reserved all intellectual property rights to it. He has not licensed the use of the composition to any political-ad campaign, nor has he assigned any of his rights to another party or to a music publisher," the statement said.
In conclusion, Lizza Nakpil may have violated the law when she allegedly registered the songs "Posible" and "Liwanag sa Dilim" under her name as both copyright owner and author, without getting a waiver of copyright from Rico Blanco.
"Based on the facts given, she may be held liable for perjury under Article183 of the Revised Penal Code," the lawyers said.
LIZZA NAKPIL'S SIDE. PEP tried to get the side of Lizza Nakpil. At around 11:30a.m. on Friday, January 15, PEP sent a text message to her personal number, but there was no reply. PEP sent another message at around 10a.m. on Saturday, January 16. Again, there was no reply.
At 4:52p.m. that same Saturday, PEP called the number to check if it's working. A loud ring sounded on the other line.
At press time, Nakpil still has not made any reply to our questions. PEP is still open to Nakpil if she wants to give her side on the issue.
Meanwhile, Peachy Vibal-Guioguio, PR consultant for Warner Music, told PEP last Friday that an ongoing effort to resolve the matter "amicably" prevents the record label from issuing statements to the press.