Toronto Taxpayers Are Funding Taste of Manila

Volume 7, Issue No. 9 

 OPINION/COMMENTARY

 / News That Fears None, Views That Favor Nobody /

 . . . . . A community service of The Filipino Web Channel (TheFilipinoWebChannel@gmail. com) and the Philippine Village Voice (PhilVoiceNews@gmail.com) for the information and understanding of Filipinos and the diverse communities in North America . . . .  

 Our latest as of Saturday, August 16, 2025

  

 ~ A whopping $34,000 of Toronto taxpayers' money has gone to the family-owned Taste of Manila (ToM) festival this year ostensibly to help in its expenses. The amount is nearly six times more than what the Mabuhay Philippines Festival received, which was $6,098, according to official sources. ToM has been secretive about its finances, but with the infusion of public funds, would it account for every dime it spends despite an alleged non-disclosure agreement that supposedly seals off the usually-talkative mouths of its organizers?

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 THE SECRETIVE FAMILY-OWNED BUSINESS 

 Taste of Manila Is Partly Funded by Taxpayers 

 $34K of Public Money Goes to Private Entity  

 By ROMEO P. MARQUEZ  Editor, The Filipino Web Channel 

 “Illusion is needed to disguise the emptiness within.” ― Arthur Erickson 

TORONTO - Reason escapes me why taxpayers' money should partly subsidize a family-owned business venture disguised as a community festival. 

There are cultural grounds, I understand, but when such a feast as Taste of Manila (ToM) transforms to a private entity, the motive changes from a neighbourhood outreach to a profit-seeking adventure. 

An example that easily comes to mind is the installation last year of a 13-foot high steel fence blocking establishments that refused to cough up grease money allegedly to help ToM. (Video at: ToM Organizers Install a Monument to Their Greed - a Steel Fence). 

ToM's forebear is questionable. Its birth is dubious despite claims by Rolly "kabise" Mangante that he founded it while he worked as a driver at the Philippine Consulate. 

I know how ToM came about. I know how Mangante enlisted the support of skeptical businesses that were suspicious of his motives given the nature of his work and the manner he carried himself and acted. 

The practical joke slapped by people who called him "amba" for ambassador and "congen" for consul general did not get on his nerves, rather, he happily embraced it and quite played the part by at least overdressing. Public appearances matter. 

How he and his "artists" at SPARC managed to wangle money - taxpayers' money - from the City of Toronto has not been explained, nor the grant announced. 

It is not unreasonable to assume that James Pasternak, the councillor representing the area of Little Manila, the epicentre of ToM festival, helped secure government funding. For years, he has been a lifeline for ToM. (Video at: Ramon Datol Defends Stolen Videos Now Being Used by Taste of Manila). Ramon Datol Defends Stolen Videos Now Being Used by Taste of Manila 

Obviously, time and circumstance have changed. In April 2022, Mangante declared that, in his words: "We don't have any funding from the government . . . The money is coming from our vendors, organizers . . . " How much money did ToM make from corporate sponsors and vendors?

By "organizers" he meant Cecille Araneta and Ramon "Mondee" Datol, the team that formed International Entertainment Company (IEC) which contracted with Mangante to hold and manage ToM for the next three years beginning in August 2022. 

One IEC event later, Araneta and Datol would be thrown under the bus. In came SPARC of smooth-talking Sani Baluyot and the four-dimensional troll Rose To aka Marites Tolits aka Rose Ami aka Rosemarie Ami-Seaborn. 

Datol decried what he called betrayal by Mangante, saying in Tagalog (loosely translated here in English): "There's no more friendships when it comes to money. And then you'd even smear us and stab us behind our back. Where's the respect?" (Video at the 4:17 mark: "Himutok" and "Hinagpis" Due to Betrayal by ToM's Rolly Mangante). 

This year's ToM seems to be swimming in cash, part of it coming from taxpayers. According to city officials, ToM has been awarded $34,000. Usually, the city said, such money is spent for safety, security and production expenses. 

But ToM is no longer a community festival that it purports to be. Mangante's family - him, his wife (the so-called first lady of ToM), and a daughter - now runs it through a maze of business interests like the Taste of Manila Foundation Inc. and a company denominated as 5012252 Ontario Inc. 

Were Mangante, Baluyot and Rose To aka Marites Tolits aka Rose Ami aka Rosemarie Ami-Seaborn truthful in portraying ToM as needing financial support when they applied and secured taxpayer dollars from the City? 

What role did Councillor Pasternak play in supporting ToM? Was he made aware of the financial situation of ToM, being one of its staunchest political backers? Why was Pasternak quiet about the "illegal" fence ToM had set up last year blocking several establishments that refused to "donate" money to ToM? (Related video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hLl_ud3-Xew). 

To former MP Ya'ara Saks, "Everyone should benefit when a community festivalcomes in the area." Why then did the City extend financial benefits to ToM when it practices bullying and discrimination? (Copyright 2025. All Rights Reserved).

Hermie Garcia: Preaching the Truth But Acting the Lies

Volume 7, Issue No. 8

OPINION/COMMENTARY

/ News That Fears None, Views That Favor Nobody /

. . . . . A community service of The Filipino Web Channel (TheFilipinoWebChannel@gmail. com) and the Philippine Village Voice (PhilVoiceNews@gmail.com) for the information and understanding of Filipinos and the diverse communities in North America . . . . 

Our latest as of Monday, August 11, 2025 

~ Years before the money scandal broke out, editors at a local tabloid professed their adherence to the truth. Fast forward to 2023, that so-called fidelity would crumble by their own doing. They were talking with a forked tongue; saying one thing and doing another. It's incredible how members of the local press association, which is actually a club for social climbers, got lectured on the truth by the person who supposedly despised telling lies, but who, in fact, did lie and deceive. 

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A NON-FICTITIOUS HERMIE GARCIA SPEAKS

A Forked Tongue Shows in How He Acts

He Says One Thing And Does Another 

By ROMEO P. MARQUEZ 

Editor, The Filipino Web Channel

“Truth is not afraid of scrutiny; only deception fears the light.” ― Aloo Denish Obiero

TORONTO - For want of something relaxing to do indoors this past weekend amidst the heat warnings, I decided to devote some time reading the published views of Hermie Garcia from what remains of The Philippine Reporter (TPR), the defunct fortnightly tabloid he co-edited with his wife Mila A. Garcia, which appears to have its last digital issue a year ago.

The paper's print edition shut down without notice in 2023 on the heels of revelations the Garcia couple had engaged in fraud victimizing two of its reporters - artist and journalist Michelle Chermaine Ramos and a writer based in Edmonton, Alberta who, except for being a member of Anakbayan, did not want to be identified in this story.

Ms. Ramos' exposé was a crushing blow to journalism integrity and to journalists whose allegiance is to the truth. As there's only a few uncompromising Filipino journalists in Toronto, the punch is not so much felt.

But the heavier blow is to the federal government, which allocates money for ethnic journalists not knowing it's being lied to, and its implementor in the local level, the National Ethnic Press and Media Council of Canada (NEPMCC), self-described as "Canada's other voices."

In a talk with members of the Philippine Press Club Ontario (PPCO) on December 8, 2016, Hermie Garcia asked how and what role the local media should have in the Filipino community. Well, he supplied an answer to how, thus: "By being faithful and loyal only to the truth." OMG, what an incredibly fine guy he was just by being candid!

He further expanded that, saying "the very purpose of journalism (which) is to expose the truth and shed light on problems that affect public interest." How true, and it's commendable he knew what he was talking about. (Related video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i4vVh6sZsPc&t=95s).

So as not to cast doubt on where he stood at that time, Hermie Garcia explained more succinctly: "Our role is to inform the public with the truth and hold accountable those in power and in positions of power in business and other private interests. To educate the public on important issues of the day. And also to advance views on what is good for the public, by providing context for the issues that affect our daily lives."

Nice words. Quite inspiring to hear, especially for the mostly non-journalists inhabiting PPCO. But then, fast forward to 2023, and one doesn't hear anything either from him or from NEPMCC where he and his wife are officers.

Hermie Garcia and Mila A. Garcia were caught red-handed spinning a web of lies, exploiting the naïveté of Ms. Ramos and the Edmonton writer, and made their deception believable by inventing a fictional "grant guy" in Canadian Heritage who supposedly oversaw payments of their salaries.

The hoax went undetected for months until Ms. Ramos, unsure of when to get her salary for working as reporter for the government-funded Local Journalism Initiative (LJI), took it upon herself to investigate.

That's when the fraudulent activities of the Garcia couple unraveled. Their masks fell off and their dubious story came apart. (Full story: Lies, Deceptions by The Philippine Reporter Exposed).

Lies, Deceptions by The Philippine Reporter Exposed Volume 4, Issue No. 63 OPINION/COMMENTARY / News That Fears None, Views That Favor Nobod y / . . . . . A communi...

Before LJI started, Canadian Heritage released its budget for LJI through NEPMCC a full year ahead, so there's no reason salaries were not being paid on time.

The LJI money had been in the possession of the Garcia couple but why were the two LJI reporters not compensated? What did they do with government funds intended for salaries?

These two basic questions remained unanswered for the last two years now. The NEPMCC and its top officials had nothing to say even as the wrongdoing by the Garcias was happening under their noses.

In another article posted on October 26, 2018, Hermie Garcia borrowed from the dictionary to reinforce his arguments against a competing tabloid. He wrote:

"How much idle speculation, foolish hunches or malicious innuendo can you inject in an article to prevent the reader from focusing on the claim (of the plaintiff) that the transfer of properties was 'fraudulent'? To use the same term he (the writer) used, this is subterfuge! The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines subterfuge as 'deception by artifice or stratagem in order to conceal, escape or evade.' Oxford Dictionaries define the term as 'deceit used in order to achieve one’s goal.' "

What a shock! The years between 2018 and 2023 might have caused him to forget that he and his wife had engaged in a charade they knowingly despised, that is, "deception by artifice or stratagem in order to conceal, escape or evade."

That's exactly what they did to their staff - Ms. Ramos and the Edmonton writer - and by extension, to the federal Canadian Heritage and NEPMCC. To borrow the words he had borrowed, they undertook "deceit used in order to achieve one’s goal."

On the occasion of World Press Freedom Day in May 2023 which I managed to cover at Toronto City Hall, NEPMCC president Thomas Saras cited the Garcia couple, stating that: "Hermie Garcia spent 12 years in jail under Marcos for criticizing the Marcos dictatorship and his wife Mila also for a number of years for criticizing the dictatorship of Marcos." (Full story: Hermie and Mila Garcia: Freedom Fighters or Traitors?).

Hermie and Mila Garcia: Freedom Fighters or Traitors? Volume 4, Issue No. 61 OPINION/COMMENTARY / News That Fears None, Views That Favor Nobod y / . . . . . A communi...

Nothing could be farther from the truth. If Hermie Garcia and Mila A. Garcia honestly subscribed to what they espoused in their paper, they should have corrected Mr. Saras who appeared overzealous in recognizing them for what he said was "for criticizing the Marcos dictatorship."

Mr. Saras' statement was factually wrong. It is a false narrative. The Garcias were incarcerated for their subversive activities, not for writing critically against Marcos' one-man rule. I should know because I lived and worked as a foreign correspondent during those days.

Hermie Garcia himself confirmed this. He wrote in October 2018: " . . . myself and my wife were charged by the Marcos military with rebellion but nothing was proven in a court, whether civilian or military."

If truth be told, it was the late Ruben Cusipag (God bless his soul) who had fought the (Ferdinand Edralin) Marcos administration with his scathing attacks and stinging rebuke of the dictatorship beginning on September 21, 1972. His writings were more solid than "criticizing," which had earned the Garcias false acclaim by NEPMCC.

Is lying, creating fictitious narratives, exploiting unsuspecting victims, pretending to be conscientious writers second-nature to Hermie Garcia and Mila A. Garcia? 

The ready answer is in what they did to Ms. Ramos and the Edmonton writer. (Copyright 2025. All Rights Reserved).

Taste of Manila Blacklists Non-Compliant Vendors

Volume 7, Issue No. 7

OPINION/COMMENTARY

/ News That Fears None, Views That Favor Nobody /

. . . . . A community service of The Filipino Web Channel (TheFilipinoWebChannel@gmail. com) and the Philippine Village Voice (PhilVoiceNews@gmail.com) for the information and understanding of Filipinos and the diverse communities in North America . . . . 

Our latest as of Thursday, August 7, 2025 

~ Organizers of Taste of Manila act like they own Little Manila, the site of their yearly festival in the general vicinity of Bathurst St. and Wilson Ave. in North York. Smarting from last year's fencing scandal, they now impose a new rule that effectively blacklists on-site establishments that refuse to "contribute" money and practically declare them as illegitimate. 

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UNCONTROLLED LUST FOR MONEY 

Taste of Manila's Abusive Restriction

The Notice Blacklists On-Site Vendors

By ROMEO P. MARQUEZ 

Editor, The Filipino Web Channel

“Above all else, treat those in the community like how you want to be treated.” ― Anonymous

TORONTO - On its face alone, the notice or warning posted to social media by the four-dimensional troll is condemnatory of those on-site vendors which do not wish to participate in the Taste of Manila (ToM) festival.

The mindset of ToM organizers is obviously still focused on punishing them, as they did last year when they erected a 13-foot steel fence that blocked five establishments along Bathurst St. that refused to pay grease money.

Rather than promote harmony and friendliness in what should be a festive Filipino setting, the organizers - Rolly "kabise" Mangante and his two-member contractual partners SPARC (Society of Philippine Artists, Recreation and Community) - seem to have chosen to pursue their unmitigated lust for money.

Related stories:

1. https://filwebchannelmagazine.blogspot.com/2024/12/for-some-money-tom-and-sparc-went-rogue.html

2. https://filwebchannelmagazine.blogspot.com/2023/07/organizers-smooth-things-out-for-taste.html.

Knowing how their simple mind works, perhaps they didn't mean to rebuke the on-site vendors whose presence in the Bathurst-Wilson area, colloquially known as Little Manila, predates the festival. 

These vendors, mostly consisting of coffee shops, mom-and-pop eateries, convenience stores, and restaurants would not have been operating for years if they didn't comply with health regulations and have the necessary licenses.

But the message in the ToM notice is unmistakable in this post by Rose To aka Marites Tolits aka Rose Ami aka Rosemarie Ami-Seaborn. It presumes those unwilling to support ToM are unregistered, even blacklisted, and shunned doling out fees. 

The notice reads: "Taste of Manila event attendees, please purchase from vendors displaying an 'Authorized Taste of Manila Vendor' sign. These vendors are registered, adhere to Toronto Public Health rules, have insurance, and contribute to event organization fees."

The unspoken flipside is not hard to understand, i.e. don't patronize those vendors, restaurants, eateries, etc. without the sign because they don't follow health rules, don't have insurance and, more importantly, they don't pay up.

It's clearly discriminatory and contemptible. Instead of being welcoming and inclusive, ToM organizers chose to set aside the decent thing to do. In the words of former MP Ya'ara Saks: "Everyone should benefit when a community festival comes in the area." (Video at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hLl_ud3-Xew).

ToM right now is disguised as a "community festival" when in fact it is a private business owned and run by Rolly Mangante and his family.

A published account by Tony San Juan, a retired-teacher-turned-publicist, said ToM is headed by Mangante as president and CEO, and his wife Nieves and daughter Jacqueline as directors.

Reports said Mangante, who claims he founded ToM at the time he was employed as a driver at the Philippine Consulate, was selling his alleged proprietary rights in the festival. His contractual partner named Sani Baluyot said ToM is not for sale.

(Related video at: Greed Breeds Contempt and Infighting in Taste of Manila).

How is it possible that ToM could impose fees and breach local laws by unilaterally deciding to penalize non-compliant vendors such as what happened in August 2024 when it installed a steel fence on government property? (Video at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=btf2yoU4AaE).

While it collects money from the public, ToM appears to be evading scrutiny through the convenience of a non-disclosure agreement. For example, what happened to its promise to put up something for the benefit of the community?

According to an announcement, ToM has set the bar for this year "even HIGHER!" than the purported "powerhouse performances" of guests in 2024.

I hope the organizers didn't mean fencing off establishments "higher" than normal so people would not attempt to climb up to access their favorite stores.

Their chosen theme looks aspirational - "a celebration of resiliency and diversity" - although it sounds good for those who know little or nothing at all about ToM and its repulsive activities.

One example is Mangante's betrayal of an earlier agreement with International Entertainment Company (IEC) of Cecille Araneta and Mon Datol in favour of another contractor, SPARC, that led to a lawsuit.

Prior to that, Datol was a staunch defender of Mangante and his cabal of blind supporters. In excerpts from a video he created (it seems it has been taken down from his YouTube account because of embarrassment), Datol was pitifully crying out loud. (Video at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RGVqgszwyYA starting at 3:23 mark).

It may be inconvenient for some but allowing attempts by Mangante, ToM, and SPARC to continue to shake up existing vendors and get away with it should not be tolerated. None of them own Little Manila. (Copyright 2025. All Rights Reserved).

Friends Suggest Sharing the Written Word Through a Book

Volume 7, Issue No. 6

OPINION/COMMENTARY

/ News That Fears None, Views That Favor Nobody /

. . . . . A community service of The Filipino Web Channel (TheFilipinoWebChannel@gmail. com) and the Philippine Village Voice (PhilVoiceNews@gmail.com) for the information and understanding of Filipinos and the diverse communities in North America . . . . 

Our latest as of Sunday, August 3, 2025 

~ Absurd it would appear to ignore suggestions by two friends for me to write a book about personal experiences as a journalist in the Filipino community. Plans are in the works actually. But now that I'm getting unsolicited endorsements from these writers themselves, I'm persuaded as ever to continue with an earlier book titled Prerogative which I had started in my former hometown in California. 

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ANOTHER CHAPTER IN MY 'PREROGATIVE'

Detailing Experiences As a Journalist

Friends Suggest Putting Them All in a Book

By ROMEO P. MARQUEZ 

Editor, The Filipino Web Channel

“Some books should be tasted, some devoured, but only a few should be chewed and digested thoroughly.” ― Sir Francis Bacon

TORONTO - After reading a story I wrote in 2019 about my late father, media colleagues Ores Ting and Mogi Mogado commented on my online Filipino Web Magazine (FWM) that I should write a book.

I genuinely felt the sincerity of their idea at that time, and now, six years later, their proposal still touches me, especially coming from friends whose understanding of the power of the written word is as good if not better than mine.

Ores is the humorous writer - and occasionally a poet when she feels indulgent - behind the popular "Boomers in Action" column in what's then the largest Filipino newspaper in Toronto. 

Her followers are uncountable but one thing sure, they're captives to what she writes and says, and that means the entire Filipino boomer population in the Greater Toronto Area where the paper circulates.

At this point, I don't know if Ores still writes for that paper, or if she has moved some place else where she can breathe freedom. I lost track as I no longer read that paper, well, unless I'm looking for some comic relief that it provides.

"Humble beginning . . . but perseverance, hardwork, humility . . . all can reach the peak! Write a book about your existence here on earth Mon Ami!", Ores wrote and posted at the comment section below my story.

That story was headlined "A Friendship That Opened Doors to Journalism" and subtitled "A Cochero and a Fisherman Who Made Good" which appeared in the August 28, 2019 issue of FWN. (Full story at: https://filwebchannelmagazine.blogspot.com/2019/08/a-friendship-that-opened-doors-to.html).

On the same day Ores published her comment, Mogi also added his: "AWWWW naman, such nostalgia, humble beginnings just like me I can totally relate ... is this chapter 1 in your upcoming book?" 

The story evidently struck a chord in Mogi. To give context to his comment, I borrowed these lines from Ms. Michelle Chermaine Ramos, the artist and journalist who profiled Mogi in an article in Atin Ito newspaper: 

"The interviewer, seeing my heartbreak at not being admitted (to fine arts study), said these kind words: 'Michelangelo et al did not go to arts school, but they became famous. Hone up your skills . . . who knows! . . . That episode was seminal for my arts life,' " Ms. Ramos wrote, quoting Mogi. (Full story at: https://filwebchannelmagazine.blogspot.com/2024/01/portrait-of-artist-in-eyes-of-another.html).

Reading that from her account, I knew then that in my (or shall say in everyone's) struggle, I wasn't alone; everyone has his or her own aspirations to build a good life outside the homeland. 

To Mogi, the unpretentious celebrity, artist, and writer, his ambition has become reality with his iconic sculpture of Jose Rizal, the Philippine national hero, who he brought to life by peeling off his perpetual solemn look and gave him a smile. The artwork now stands in Markham. (Full story: https://filwebchannelmagazine.blogspot.com/2019/07/jose-rizal-statue-stirring-symbol-for_25.html).

I'm taking serious note of Ores' and Mogi's suggestion. In fact, I've started out two years ago at the Toronto Reference Library where one can enlist help to self-publish. And then I got busy with news coverage as a YouTuber and writing commentaries for my blog and other publications.

Self-publishing takes a lot of time. From writing to editing, layouting, proofreading, etc. everything is done by you and nobody else. It saves a lot of money, yes, but the toil and toll is on you.

In 15 years of covering the news in Toronto, I have amassed a lot of articles needing minor editing for a book. I could also do documentaries from my own video coverage of events.

For the book, I would devote two or three chapters each for subjects such as community organizations and their leaders, the media, in particular the praise, oops I mean press, club and some newspapers and their editors; the false leaders and scammers, the cottage industry called beauty pageants, the so-called foundations, the thieves and seasonal fiestas in Little Manila, and many more.

It's a big challenge to set them all in a book. And I realize too that should the book come to fruition, not all would be pleased to see their misdeeds immortalized and recorded for posterity. (Copyright 2025. All Rights Reserved).