Idineklara ng lokal na pamahalaan ng General Santos City bilang “persona non grata” ang veteran singer na si Leah Navarro.
Ito ang nakasaad sa resolusyon ni General Santos City Councilor Atty. Franklin M. Gacal Jr. na nagbabawal kay Leah na pumunta sa siyudad.
Ito ay dahil sa kontrobersiyal na tweet ni Leah nitong October 31, Huwebes, kaugnay ng serye ng malalakas na pagyanig sa Mindanao.
Ang one-word tweet ni Leah ay reply niya sa patanong ding post ni dating Supreme Court Spokesman Atty. Theodore Te.
Tweet ni Atty. Te: “What’s with all the earthquakes in Mindanao?”
Sagot ni Leah: “Retribution?”
Binigyang-kahulugan ng city resolution ang “retribution” bilang “a punishment inflicted on someone as a vengeance for a wrongful or criminal act.”
LEAH DELETES VIRAL TWEET, APOLOGIZES
Nag-viral ang naturang sagutan sa Twitter nina Leah at Atty. Te.
Kasunod nito, kapwa inulan ng mga batikos ang dalawa, kabilang na ang mula sa Mindanaoans.
November 2, Sabado, nang magkasunod na binura nina Atty. Te—na tubong Mindanao—at Leah ang kani-kanilang tweet, na sinundan ng paghingi nila ng paumanhin.
Tweet ni Atty. Te: “I have deleted a tweet and my reply-explanation to that tweet which, though unintended, have caused offense, pain, and hurt to family and friends in Mindanao where I am from, proud to be from, and which I love…
[1/2]: I have deleted a tweet and my reply-explanation to that tweet which, though unintended, have caused offense, pain, and hurt to family and friends in Mindanao where I am from, proud to be from, and which I love. ...
— Theodore Te (@TedTe) November 2, 2019
“…though my tweet was rhetorical, non-political, and personal, it invited hurtful replies from others whose tweets I cannot and do not control.
“I apologize for giving them that platform.
“To family and friends from Mindanao, please be assured of my prayers for your safety.”
[2/2]...though my tweet was rhetorical, non-political, and personal, it invited hurtful replies from others whose tweets I cannot and do not control. I apologize for giving them that platform. To family and friends from Mindanao, please be assured of my prayers for your safety.
— Theodore Te (@TedTe) November 2, 2019
November 4, Lunes, nang huling mag-tweet si Leah tungkol sa paghingi niya ng paumanhin sa insidente.
Post ni Leah: "I apologized, deleted my tweet, but they just can't find it in their hearts to forgive my one word reply in the form of a question."
Dagdag niya: "Why not help Mindanao instead?
"Stop wasting time on me, I'm not a victim."
I apologized, deleted my tweet, but they just can’t find it in their hearts to forgive my one word reply in the form of a question. Now they’ve twisted it into a declaration. Why not help Mindanao instead? Stop wasting time on me, I’m not a victim. https://t.co/s5v5FN6pAt
— Leah Navarro (@leahnavarro) November 4, 2019
Sa kabila nito, iginiit sa city resolution—na isinapubliko ngayong Martes, November 5—na si Leah “has no factual or moral basis to accuse the people of Mindanao of having committed any wrongful or criminal act that deserves the punishment from the Great Almighty.”
Sa resolusyon, tinawag ni Councilor Gacal na “despicable” ang tweet ni Leah, na ang umano’y “callous reaction to the tragedy that struck the island is motivated by her irrational politically-motivated anger.”
Kilala si Leah bilang mahigpit na kritiko ng administrasyon ni Pangulong Rodrigo Duterte, na tubong Davao City.
LEAH REACTS
Samantala, iniulat ngayong Martes ng The Philippine STAR ang naging reaksiyon ni Leah sa pagdedeklara sa kanya ng GenSan bilang persona non grata.
Quote ng STAR kay Leah: “I apologized and deleted my tweet. It is their right not to forgive me.
“There’s nothing I can do about that.”
Ni-retweet ni Leah ngayong Martes ang pahayag niya:
'IT IS THEIR RIGHT NOT TO FORGIVE ME'
— The Philippine Star (@PhilippineStar) November 5, 2019
Singer Leah Navarro said there is nothing she could do if her critics would not forgive her after apologizing and deleting her “retribution” tweet regarding the series of earthquakes in Mindanao. pic.twitter.com/qr5b3a0tE6
Mahigit magnitude 6.0 na pagyanig ang naitala sa iba’t ibang lugar sa Mindanao nitong October 16, 29, at 31, bukod sa napakaraming aftershocks.
Ayon sa National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), nasa 21 katao na ang nasawi sa lindol, 424 ang nasugatan, at aabot na sa 190,000 ang naapektuhan, as of November 5.