Taste of Manila Scored for False Representation

Volume 4, Issue No. 35

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, December 26, 2022 

~ The bad things some people are willing to do are unraveling piece by piece in the very core of the Taste of Manila (ToM) festival. Not quite settled yet post-pandemic, ToM's supposed point man in the Philippine capital - its alleged "chief PR & political affairs" - is denouncing ToM organizers for using his name and picture to underline his purported "appointment" without his consent. This is not surprising as ToM has also stolen film footage to market the festival.  

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STEALING FOOTAGE IS NOT ENOUGH 

'Chief PR' Condemns ToM's Stunt

'They're Using Me,' Says Man in Manila

By ROMEO P. MARQUEZ 

Editor, The Filipino Web Channel

"The outside doesn't always match the inside". - Rebekah Crane

TORONTO - Stealing film footage did not seem enough for several individuals connected with the Taste of Manila (ToM) festival; they had to resort to something else just as egregious.

In order to look good, and keep the appearance of being outstanding, organizers have put out a website documenting their thievery on a scale unparalleled in community associations. Perhaps the realization that it was unlawful has not dawned on them.

Or, maybe they were banking on the possibility that nobody would care to look into it with such a minute scrutiny as the one this journalist and some friends are undertaking to flush out the culprits.

ToM's supposed point man in the Philippine capital Manila, identified on the website as Michael Salvador, has complained against his inclusion in the online portal.

Apparently, he had not been advised, nor his consent sought, to the use of his photo, name, and designation as "chief PR & political affairs".

"Dapat tangalin nila yan kasi di ko naman alam yan at masama pa ako sa kaso," he writes in Tagalog on a Facebook post. (They should remove it because I might be dragged into the case).

"Wala silang consent sa akin," he explains when informed of his alleged "appointment" as ToM's "chief PR & political affairs". (They have no consent from me).

"No, I did not know this. They are using my name," Salvador tells a friend in Toronto who had notified him about the developments in ToM.

The "case" Salvador had adverted to is the petition for injunction the International Entertainment Company (IEC) of Cecille Araneta and Ramon Datol has filed in Superior Court against ToM alleged founder Rolly Mangante, ToM, and new partner SPARC (Society of Philippine Artists, Recreation and Community).

The IEC is asking the court to stop SPARC from staging the ToM festival in August 2023 allegedly because of Mangante's breaching of his three-year contract with IEC.

The suit followed the signing of an agreement between Mangante and SPARC to undertake next year's ToM. (Full story at: https://filwebchannelmagazine.blogspot.com/2022/12/volume-4-issue-no.html).

SPARC is headed by Danilo Baluyot and realtor Rose Ami aka Rosemarie Ami-Seaborn, the self-identified online troll who hides behind the pseudonym Marites Tolits. (Full story at: https://filwebchannelmagazine.blogspot.com/2022/12/the-avarice-of-festival-organizers.html).

At least three organizations appear to be complicit in ToM's questionable activities, namely, the Taste of Manila Production (TMP) of Mangante and family; the Philippine Events Services Ontario (PESO) of Philip Beloso, Pepito Torralba (no relation to the renown Torralba couple Ramon of Hotdog fame and wife Teresa), and Jerome Peralta; and the IEC of Araneta, Datol, and Dannasol Luna.

Under those purported not-for-profit organizations are what may be referred to as sub-contractors. One example is the digital outfit called "Lunatronix Studios" and its principals all surnamed Luna who, we are told, are brothers of fake "reporter" Dannasol Luna.

There's also the so-called TOMz Radio, some of whose corporate officers and members of the creative team are the same people belonging to IEC like Araneta, Datol, Mangante, and Ian Santillan, and Grace "JuGee" Pammit.

In her LinkedIn profile, Pammit said she was a "former entertainment/lifestyle writer" for the Philippine Courier, Datol's now-defunct entertainment tabloid. She said that she was also a "co-host" of an obscure radio program by Datol.

This bolsters my belief that she's the partially-identified "Grace" who authored the largely concocted "The History of the Taste of Manila" on ToM's website. (Full story at: https://filwebchannelmagazine.blogspot.com/2022/12/a-revisionist-within-taste-of-manila.html).

The ToM street festival dominated the Filipino community's summer events from August 2014 to 2019. The pandemic effectively ended its six-year run. 

The alleged not-for-profit PESO led by Philip Beloso and Pepito Torralba had revived it through virtual presentations in 2020 and 2021. In August 2022, another not-for-profit, the IEC of Araneta and Datol, staged its version of ToM in contract with Mangante.

ToM appears to be the central figure in the interlocking interests of several individuals who are either officers or members of at least three organizations whose coming into existence is questionable. (Copyright 2022. All Rights Reserved).

A Revisionist Within Taste of Manila Festival

Volume 4, Issue No. 34

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, December 24, 2022 

~ The Filipino community is not wanting in role players, actors, pretenders, and so forth, and there are willing if unseeing enablers who take delight in promoting them regardless of the wrongs being committed. A purported historical account of the Taste of Manila street festival appears to be tailored to burnish an image soiled by alleged corruption and mismanagement. 

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REVISING THE HISTORICAL NARRATIVE 

Distortions, Factual Omissions at Taste of Manila

An Enabler Glorifies the Act and the Actor

By ROMEO P. MARQUEZ 

Editor, The Filipino Web Channel

"What you allow is what will continue". - Unknown

TORONTO - The official website of Taste of Manila Inc. (https://www.thetasteofmanila.com/) has published a purported historical account of the street festival since it began in August 2014 in a North York hub now referred to, unofficially, as Little Manila, which is no more than a one-kilometer stretch of Bathurst St. from its junction at Wilson Ave.

The acknowledged author of that article is a certain Grace who, I surmise is Grace Pammit alias Grace Pammit-Luna, the "executive administrator" of Taste of Manila Production, the alliance that counts for its officers Rolly Mangante, Cecille Araneta, Ramon Datol, Danna Luna, among others. (Related video at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MdTnX700_a8).

This is the group, along with PESO (Philippine Events Services Ontario) led by the trio of Philip Beloso, Pepito Torralba, and Jerome Peralta responsible for the Taste of Manila (ToM) virtual presentations of 2020 and 2021 which stole video footage from The Filipino Web Channel. (Video art: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXqjO8AWUJ4).

I have no idea who Grace is. Incidentally, what is the relation of Grace Pammit-Luna with the fake "reporter" Danna Luna, and the other two persons in ToM both surnamed Luna, and the so-called digital outfit called "Lunatronix"?

Grace is probably a newly-emerged babe in the woods still trying to find her footing in such a nefarious neighborhood as Little Manila as to lend her partial name to an article that not only lacks depth and background but also authenticity.

She wants to shine, obviously, but why is she too timid to be recognized for her work, if indeed it is hers? Why not own it? I would venture some guesses.

Unless she was physically present covering ToM from beginning to end, her account had to rely on what people with certain preconceived biases had told her. Her article is the best evidence of this.

I was there, so I knew . . . everything, the whole ToM anatomy. And because I was there from its birthing as a journalist, photographer, videographer, and what have you, I have all the reasons to challenge Grace's retelling of what went on inside and outside of ToM.

If Grace aspires to be a writer, she's starting off on the wrong foot. (Shades of Danna Luna?). Why? Because she distorts the story, manipulates the facts, and substitutes fact with fiction to accommodate her circle of friends in ToM.

This is just as worse as plagiarism. I believe she knew, that's why she shies away from fully identifying herself. She knew what she did was wrong. Her article is unacceptable and people reading it should be cautioned.

One gross distortion she knowingly made cries out for its unfairness. It's a put-down for one of the top financial backers. Perhaps, if she could only bury all the videos, photos, and stories of ToM 2017, I believe she would have done it already.

In the 2017 segment of her article, Grace fails, perhaps deliberately, to mention A&L Hammer Workforce Management owned by the husband and wife Al and Lily Hammer, as one of the major sponsors along with TELUS, Trureal Inc. Ford Canada, and TD Canada Trust.

That omission - not citing A&L Hammer Workforce Management as part of the historical record - has focused public attention on the seemingly growing corruption in ToM, and possibly in some not-for-profit organizations chosen by Mangante as his partners.

In Grace's account, Mangante quite succeeded in portraying himself as a true believer in promoting the Filipino community. But that's one side of the coin; the other side is almost incredible to be given serious thought.

Without checking the truthfulness of her "facts," she now installs herself as a willing and unseeing accessory in hiding the truth and in propping Mangante up. She doesn't know the circumstances. (Related story at: https://filwebchannelmagazine.blogspot.com/2020/01/3-in-1-who-is-amba-congen-consul-of.html).

Before A&L was sweet-talked into a sponsorship at a cost of $40,000-plus paid personally to Mangante in the 2017 ToM, Mangante was in its employ as a driver, the same job he had held for years prior to his retirement at the Philippine Consulate. 

He had applied at A&L and was taken in, partly out of pity, drawing a salary of $500 a week transporting workers to mushroom farms in Ontario. And for his personal use, a four-door Mercedes Benz sedan was made available by the company with a corresponding gas allowance, plus an iPhone.

An arrangement like that would be perfect for anyone in dire need of a job. But not for Mangante. He had something else in mind once he got an idea from workers on how they were recruited from the Philippines to work on farms.

In 2018, months after the 2017 ToM festival, Mangante was dismissed from his job at A&L. "He was an 'ingrato'," an ingrate who spied on the inner workings of the company, according to those who knew him.

Knowledgeable sources who did not wish to be identified for this story claimed Mangante had been bad-mouthing the owners and had tipped off the authorities for what he had thought, wrongly, of illegal recruitment of workers. (Full story and video at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QprwiFQiLjs).

Once he was let go, he began to connive with his friends and shady characters in Little Manila to usurp A&L's contract with mushroom farm owners in the province.

At one point, he went to a farm owner, asking to be the one to supply the farm with workers recruited by his partners who had taken an interest in labor recruitment in Ontario following Mangante's clandestine information-gathering.

The owner balked at Mangante, telling him he was an "asshole" for even suggesting getting rid of A&L, his reliable partner for years, according to sources familiar with the incident.

He also tried to sabotage the gala evening A&L held in April 2018 to honor workers, friends, patrons, and guests from the Philippines. (Video at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ny66JOCaGg).

Federal, provincial, and city officials who had grown close to Mangante through the street festival had been secretly told not to attend the gala ostensibly because border agents were supposed to raid it for some perceived immigration violations, sources explained. The event went on undisturbed.

But Mangante's revenge did not end there. He continues to portray himself as a victim and surrounds himself with enablers. And in the case of Grace, perhaps unwittingly? (Copyright 2022. All Rights Reserved).

Scavenging Dumpsters Is Not A Way to Look for Stories

Volume 4, Issue No. 33

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 Tuesday, December 20, 2022 

~ The obvious lack of material to report on has led a newspaper publisher to scrounge the dumpster where she found stuff, long discarded, and salvaged it for renewed public consumption. The practice is definitely a no-no in journalism unless new and substantive facts are unearthed to change the narrative. In this instance, it's hatred that's fueling the act. 

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BALITA ARTICLE SALVAGED FROM DUMPSTER

Reopening Old Wounds or Just Lazy?

Disguised as a Warning, But It Is Not 

By ROMEO P. MARQUEZ 

Editor, The Filipino Web Channel

"The evil that men do lives on the front pages of greedy newspapers, but the good is oft interred apathetically inside". - Brooks Atkinson

 

TORONTO - Nothing is more pathetic than in this latest diatribe by a local tabloid publisher and "editor" who regurgitated ancient stories about two friends she hated and continues to hate, and in the process, promote her and her pals' selfish interests.

Garbage, even when recycled, is still garbage. Putting lipstick on a pig does not transform the animal; it may disguise it, but it's still a pig. And that is what this process is all about - recycling refuse long spurn by the authorities for lacking fundamentals of evidence.

The animosity remains inflamed, possibly stoked by friends who, like her, are driven by profound resentment and envy. There's a gang of real-life scammers who call themselves elite and sheltered, figuratively, in her own backyard.

Having been a writer and associate editor of Balita from 2012 to June 2019, I feel a sense of responsibility to tell unsuspecting readers that what they read in that paper is not necessarily gospel truth. Information from there should be taken with a grain of salt.

The latest issue of Balita (Dec. 16-31, 2022) carried an article on its website written by Tess Cusipag titled "BEWARE . . . Toronto scammers abound around us". Glancing at it, I thought I read it before.

In any case, it piqued my interest. I would not be scooped if something like this comes up. I knew I would be the first one to know from my small army of sources in the community and out.

From reading the headline, I thought she had finally mustered the courage to expose those elite scammers - her friends - in her own backyard. Was this a sign she finally freed herself and Balita from the evil clutches of this group?

Tess Cusipag became the publisher of Balita upon the death in 2013 of husband Ruben Cusipag, who, unlike her, was a respected journalist in the Philippines. He had moved to Canada, founded the tabloid in 1978 as an anti-martial law newspaper, and was its first editor.

Unschooled, untrained, and inexperienced in the basics of journalism, she just plodded head-on and made herself editor as well. Publishers are usually the financiers behind publications. Editors, however, are a different breed. They must have at least a working understanding of newspaper publishing, which is essentially journalism.

In Balita's case, Tess Cusipag is both publisher and editor. The first one is okay, there's no question she has the money to fund it; the second is questionable because of an awful lack of credentials.

So, it is understandable if Balita founders from time to time. The editor in her fails her, or rather the newspaper, and to a large extent, the readers and news consumers who patronize it for the usual rumors and photos of the latest socials.

Having given her the benefit of the doubt, I still could not fathom why she would re-engage in what potentially could be an expensive defamation lawsuit . . . if the offended party so desires.

Her latest caper is the article about her warning against scammers. It's ironic. She didn't have to look far; they're there watching with delight as she wages a fight - ala Don Quixote - against the windmills of her mind.

In that article, she again points an accusing finger at what seems to be her all-time favorite piñatas - Naomi Ong and Lily Hammer. (I don't want to be dragged into this evolving controversy by repeating Tess Cusipag's assertions here. So, instead, I advise readers to visit the story at: https://www.balita.ca/beware-toronto-scammers-abound-around-us/).

What's interesting is that Tess Cusipag again quotes what she describes as a "paralegal, soon to be a practicing lawyer Jun Saludares" who made disparaging remarks against Lily Hammer.

"Saludares," says Tess Cusipag, "won several of the court cases against Liwayway and they are just waiting for courts to open to collect judgements" (sic).

She continues: "Saludares is one of the defamation victims of Lily Hammer together with Chito Collantes of CWSS and Balita newspaper".

While she oozes with pride defending Saludares and Collantes, she forgets to mention that Saludares (full name is Dominador De la Saludares) was cited by the Law Society of Ontario for "professional misconduct", "facilitating fraud", "failing to comply with client verification", and "acting outside scope".

The summary released on January 21, 2019, from the Law Society reads: '"The Paralegal (meaning Saludares) entered an agreed statement of facts and admitted that he committed professional misconduct as alleged when he accepted a retainer to collect a purported debt of over $500,000 in circumstances where he ought to have known that the client was engaged in fraud – Joint penalty submission for three-month suspension and $5,000 in costs with two years to pay accepted as reasonable – Although there had been significant neglect of duty and a substantial fraud in the amount of $434,764, the respondent was a new licensee, remorseful and had immediately reported the matter to police upon realizing the cheques were fraudulent and fully co-operated with the Law Society." 

(The full report is at: https://www.canlii.org/en/on/onlst/doc/2019/2019onlsth12/2019onlsth12.html

Incidentally, a "Dominador Saludares" recently posted on LinkedIn a photocopy of an "Affidavit for Taking the Oath for Call" indicating that the person is now a barrister and solicitor in Ontario. He swore an oath to King Charles III, which means the swearing-in was fairly recent as Prince Charles became king only in September.

If this is the same Jun Saludares aka Dominador De la Saludares, well, congratulations! It also shows how outdated Balita is.

Shall we fault Tess Cusipag for her blatant ignorance? Was she deliberately covering for him? 

(Related story at: https://filwebchannelmagazine.blogspot.com/2019/12/defending-truth-has-its-downside.html)

She also mentions "Chito Collantes of CWSS". I'm glad that she dropped the title "Dr." that he usually adds to his name. "Dr." could mean doctor of medicine of which he is definitely not, or an acronym for "dick restriction" which I leave to readers to decide.

Collantes, who runs a recruitment agency in Toronto, is the alleged founder of a dubious gang called Elite Crusaders supposedly on the lookout for scam artists and wrongdoers in the community. It disappeared as quickly as it popped out in February 2020. 

The latest but recycled article Tess Cusipag has republished appears intended to reopen old wounds. Watch out, you don't want to relive the past and its pains. There's a better way to look for stories, not scavenge from the garbage bins. (Copyright 2022. All Rights Reserved).

The Avarice of Festival Organizers

Volume 4, Issue No. 32

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, December 19, 2022 

~ Former friends who were together in stealing video footage and then used and manipulated the contents to promote the Taste of Manila festival are now in an expensive legal fight with one of the parties seeking damages to the tune of $1.5 million. If there's anything that's immediately noticeable in this skirmish, it is their avarice. While they disparage each other, they forgot that they once connived to purloin intellectual property, an act they neither apologize for nor acknowledged nor compensated. The suit they filed in court is deeply insulting. 

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I.E.C. v TASTE OF MANILA AND S.P.A.R.C.

The Insult Behind a $1.5-Million Claim

They Forgot They Were Together in the Steal

By ROMEO P. MARQUEZ 

Editor, The Filipino Web Channel

"In prosperity our friends know us; in adversity we know our friends". 

- John Churton Collins

TORONTO - Comes now the press release that says this group is seeking monetary reward to the tune of $1.5 million from another group because of the latter's fault.

I was stunned the first time I heard it. The amount being sought gives an idea - absent raw or audited financial statements - of how profitable holding the Taste of Manila (ToM) festival had become.

The number is supplied by the International Entertainment Company (IEC) in its statement of claim filed in Superior Court against Rolly Mangante alias "kabise", the self-declared founder of ToM; and his newfound partners in SPARC (Society of Philippine Artists, Recreation and Community) headed by Danilo Baluyot and realtor Rose Ami aka Rosemarie Ami-Seaborn aka Marites Tolits, the roving troll of Little Manila.

One possible outcome of IEC's suit is a revelation this reporter has been seeking from TOM but never materialized, which is financial accountability from all ToM festivals from 2014 to 2019, and from its virtual presentations in 2020 and 2021.

Besides, Mangante and ToM had promised to engage in projects to benefit the community in their application for not-for-profit (NFP) status. Where are these projects? Did they actually implement them? Or were they just smokescreens?

The lawsuit is an opportunity to know many things about ToM and Mangante's ghostly web of companies ranging from Taste of Manila Production, Taste of Manila, Inc., etc., and the sudden proliferation of NFP organizations such as PCCC (Philippine Cultural Community Centre), PLACA (Philippine Legacy and Cultural Alliance), PESO (Philippine Events Services Ontario), IEC (International Entertainment Company, and lately SPARC (Society of Philippine Artists, Recreation and Community).

The urge to join the fun in this merry-go-round is quite irresistible. However, none of the people behind these orgs has considered my suggestion to have another NFP like Samahan at Ugnayan ng mga Pinoy sa Ontario-Toronto and I understand why. It's probably because of the resulting acronym - SUPOT - which is not quite macho, to begin with. Imagine being asked: SUPOT ka ba? It's embarrassing, especially for the menfolk.

But seriously, why was ToM bankrupted in 2018? Was Mangante and his retinue honest with city authorities who rescued it from its downfall? Did Mangante lie about the true state of affairs in ToM enough to convince Mayor John Tory to waive or lower some fees?

IEC and Mangante had been good friends shortly before SPARC entered the picture. So close were they because of a common aspiration, and that is, to reap the pecuniary gifts from their joint venture to hold ToM in August 2022, which they did.

For two years at least, Mangante and his changing partners, namely, PESO under its president, Philip Beloso; and IEC led by Cecille Araneta and Mon Datol - raided my video files, stole content, and manipulated them to fit their narrative.

I have exhausted all friendly possibilities to right the instances of wrongdoing they did, and as of this writing, I still have to hear from them.

Now their friendship has gone sour. IEC is suing Mangante, ToM and its new partner SPARC while the three parties are also preparing their own legal action.

Just goes to show how fragile friendships rooted in money and conflicting egos can be. The case is a classic nip-in-the-bud story by a once-friendly group against another. It's not farfetched that they end up bitter enemies eyeing each other's throats.

A statement from IEC issued Monday (Dec. 12, 2022) claimed that "Rolly Mangante deceived IEC when it misrepresented Taste of Manila Inc. as a corporation duly organized by law . . . "

That's quite serious if found true. Not only was IEC duped, but the government was also defrauded.

"The truth," the press statement signed by Datol said, "is that the corporation Mr. Mangante incorporated is legally named as 501225 Ontario Inc. and registered in law with a trade name of Taste of Manila Production." 

So, IEC has put a price on its head - a staggering $1.5-million "for breach of contract and punitive and damages" (sic) allegedly by ToM, Mangante and SPARC.

To visualize how big that sum of money is, is deeply insulting to me. 

They can well negotiate, they could settle, they could let bygone be bygones, they could kiss each other's ass again and makeup, they could do anything, and be friends again.

What about the video content they stole from The Filipino Web Channel? I had refused to hail IEC, ToM, Mangante and his blind followers to court for what clearly is a copyright violation even as I knew some people made good money.

I demanded an apology and an admission that they filched materials from me, doctored them to promote Mangante's wife Nieves and IEC's Cecille Araneta, and to endear themselves to politicians like James Pasternak, Mayor Tory, MP Marco Mendicino, and a host of other Liberal MPs.

Need I go to court to force them to admit guilt, apologize, and pay up? (Copyright 2022. All Rights Reserved).

IEC, SPARC Fight Over Festival in Little Manila

Volume 4, Issue No. 31

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 Wednesday, December 14, 2022 

~ Contradicting claims put the holding next year of what was once the largest Filipino street festival in North America in peril. Both sides to the conflict are now preparing to litigate the case that stems from two contractual agreements entered into by the people behind the Taste of Manila fest being planned for August 2023. 

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THE $1.5-MILLION QUESTION 

Rival Orgs Tangle Over Taste of Manila 

One Group Seeks An Injunction 

By ROMEO P. MARQUEZ 

Editor, The Filipino Web Channel

"Litigation was war. A war that usually inflicted heavy casualties on both sides". 

- Kenneth Eade

TORONTO - The not-for-profit (NFP) organization seeking a halt to next year's Taste of Manila (ToM) festival had been officially dumped and a competing NFP which surfaced only in September signed up in its place, an official has claimed.

Two groups - International Entertainment Company (IEC) and the Society of Philippine Artists, Recreation and Community (SPARC) - are now formally on a war footing as each tries to diminish the other over who has the sole and legal right to hold ToM. (Related video at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9aOgDtLd6ec).

At the center of the brewing controversy is the spurious founder of ToM, Rolly Mangante, alias "kabise", a former driver at the Philippine Consulate who had stolen the idea of ToM from diplomatic officials who were then posted in Toronto and registered it as his own.

One of those officials, Ambassador Pedro Chan, consul general in Toronto at that time, passed away in July. It was in his meeting with top Toronto police officials where Mangante sat in without official authority. A photo of the gathering made it look like he was among the participants. 

(Related story at: https://filwebchannelmagazine.blogspot.com/2022/08/no-way-to-treat-diplomat-like-what.html).

Mangante has a number of alleged NFPs under his name or carried the tagline Taste of Manila. The latest that popped up recently is the Taste of Manila Production, which seems different from Taste of Manila Inc. His wife, Nieves, and daughters Jacqueline and Roloves are his directors. (Video at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXqjO8AWUJ4).

Reached for comment on a petition for injunction filed by IEC against SPARC, Danilo Baluyot, executive director of SPARC, said his group was contracted to mount ToM in August as IEC's contract has allegedly lapsed.

"SPARC had been informed that the contract between TOM  and IEC had been rescinded before we got into contract with Mr. Mangante," he explained in response to a question by this reporter.

He declined to identify the contracting party on the part of ToM. He also did not respond to a request for a copy of the document that allegedly says the IEC contract had been scrapped for whatever reason.

The revocation of that contract, Baluyot emphasized, took place "even before we started discussing the possibilities of collaborating with TOM 2023".

On the other hand, IEC believed its contract with ToM continues to exist and remains valid up to 2024, the third year of its three-year agreement to manage ToM. (Video at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B4ap92btLM8).

In support of that contention, IEC has asked the Superior Court of Justice to stop SPARC from conducting the street festival in August 2023.

On Monday, Dec. 12, IEC issued a press statement saying: "The injunction seeks to stop the defendant from continually breaching the contract of IEC and to force the defendants to honour its obligations. IEC is also seeking a total of $1.5-Million for breach of contract and punitive and damages" (sic).

For his part, Baluyot stated: "None of the claims or allegations in the Statement of Claim we received have been proven and no injunctions have been granted against any party concerned".

A troll within SPARC hiding under the pseudonym Marites Tolits has propagandized Baluyot's private response to this reporter's queries and posted it on Facebook like it was now the official SPARC stand on some issues.

"Marites Tolits," according to informed sources familiar with her tactics, is actually Rose Ami, aka Rosemarie Ami-Seaborn, the garrulous real estate agent who hangs out in Little Manila and is currently a member of SPARC.

Rose Ami is regarded by many in the Filipino community as a loudspeaker, a human megaphone that, once switched on, rattles off gibberish bordering on rumors. (Related story at: https://filwebchannelmagazine.blogspot.com/2022/11/our-troll-neighbors-marites-tolits-and.html).

IEC lawyer Jarvis Yap Ortega, meanwhile, said evidence to back up their claim against SPARC and ToM will "be presented to the court and not in press releases".

"We will present evidence in Court and not try this case in the press," he states in reply to a question. 

According to him, "the statement of claim had included all parties as defendants and there is no other defendants as of now.  If subsequent evidence discloses other defendants, then we will accordingly amend our claim". 

He, however, did not identify "all parties as defendants". (Copyright 2022. All Rights Reserved).

Is Taste of Manila Doomed?

Volume 4, Issue No. 30

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, December 12, 2022 

~ The shitstorm is finally coming! The once overly friendly but now forsaken braggarts in the local community are asking the Superior Court to stop an equally boisterous group of wannabes from holding the Taste of Manila festival in August 2023. And while they are at it, they also seek $1.5-million in punitive and other damages against the Johnny-come-lately team. 

 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

NOT-FOR-PROFIT ORG SEEKS INJUNCTION

Suit to Stop Taste of Manila 2023 

$1.5-Million in Damages Sought 

By ROMEO P. MARQUEZ 

Editor, The Filipino Web Channel

“Pigs should not make friends with butchers. One must choose one's friends wisely.” ― Erik Pevernagie

TORONTO - Even before its rival could start off and make good its exultation as "mas pinalakas, mas pinasaya, mas pinalaking Taste of Manila 2023," the cashiered not-for-profit International Entertainment Company (IEC) has petitioned the Superior Court of Justice to stop a newbie from staging the street festival in August 2023.

An injunction was filed against Rolly Mangante, self-declared founder of Taste of Manila (ToM); his purported company denominated as 5012252 Ontario Inc.; and the Society of Philippine Artists, Recreation and Community (SPARC), according to a press statement released through IEC official Ramon Datol and furnished this reporter.

The court has not indicated when it will consider the petition, but granted or not, it's certain to throw a monkey wrench to the whole affair that SPARC has boasted bagging courtesy of Mangante, aka "kabise," who, insiders say, stands to benefit financially from the arrangement. (Video at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B4ap92btLM8).

None of the defendants were immediately available for comment. (Related story at: https://filwebchannelmagazine.blogspot.com/2022/11/new-taste-of-manila-in-jeopardy.html).

The press statement says: "The injunction seeks to stop the defendant from continually breaching the contract of IEC and to force the defendants to honour its obligations. IEC is also seeking a total of $1.5-Million for breach of contract and punitive and damages".

IEC, which handled the recent ToM in August, alleged that Mangante had engaged in deception, misrepresentation, and "unlawful action" in contracting IEC to stage ToM for three years starting August 2022 through August 2024. (Related story at: https://filwebchannelmagazine.blogspot.com/2022/11/questions-arise-on-fate-of-tom-festival.html).

IEC also claimed that Mangante and the company he represented as CEO signed an agreement with SPARC for the 2023 ToM knowing that that festival has already been contracted to IEC. 

"The defendant entered into this agreement when they knew that IEC has a valid and subsisting agreement for the upcoming event," the press statement said.

IEC further alleged that "Rolly Mangante deceived IEC when it misrepresented Taste of Manila Inc. as a corporation duly organized by law when the truth is that the corporation Mr. Mangante incorporated is legally named as 501225 Ontario Inc. and registered in law with a trade name of Taste of Manila Production".

IEC headed by events producer Cecille O. Araneta apparently is the sole licensee of ToM for three years as shown by a Licensee and Royalty Agreement she signed with Mangante on March 21, 2022.

Under that agreement, IEC alleges, the company referred to as 5012252 Inc. "misrepresented itself as Taste of Manila, Inc. president/CEO Rolando Mangante". (Video at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qd02DO503DU).

SPARC executive director Danilo "Sani" Baluyot told this reporter in October that ToM Inc., in his own words, "offered us a contract for ToM 2023" after holding a series of meetings. He declined to comment on why ToM and or Mangante junked IEC.

It's not clear if the other people behind SPARC, namely, Rosemarie Ami, Lita Mendigoria, and Janelle Bascon, were included in the petition for injunction. 

SPARC, which is claimed to be a not-for-profit organization, is a Johnny-come-lately in community events organizing. It has no track record of holding festivals of the magnitude of ToM. (Related story at: https://filwebchannelmagazine.blogspot.com/2022/11/whats-behind-fast-turnover-of-nfps-at.html). (Copyright 2022. All Rights Reserved).