Fake 'Congen' Triggers Dispute Over Taste of Manila Fest

Volume 4, Issue No. 58

OPINION/COMMENTARY

/ News That Fears None, Views That Favor Nobody /

. . . . . A community service of Romar Media Canada, 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, May 9, 2023 

~ It's not exactly the kind of clarity that the community needs to know. In this war of words taking place before our eyes, the two protagonists for the Taste of Manila (ToM) festival are sowing confusion and spreading misleading information. They both claim having the right to stage ToM, thanks to this wishy-washy former driver of the Philippine Consulate teasingly called "congen" who, it is claimed by one of the litigants, breached an existing agreement and contracted another for some money.

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I.E.C. v. S.P.A.R.C. 

ls Taste of Manila Going or Already Gone?

A Tug-of-War Has Turned 'Little Manila' Into a Battleground

By ROMEO P. MARQUEZ 

Editor, The Filipino Web Channel

"People are way too quick to make commitments and too quick to abandon them". - Frank Sonnenberg  

TORONTO - What had passed for a challenge abruptly ended in hours when a third party unexpectedly dipped his finger into a fight between two orgs claiming the right to hold the Taste of Manila (ToM) festival.

A banner announcing ToM's staging dates hung a week ago by the International Entertainment Company (IEC) at the storefront of the newly-established Salu Salo food and grocery store was pulled down before it could even get noticed.

(Video coverage at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BcTMQJjbD4s).

Apparently, the alleged perpetrator was the landlord who said Salu Salo had no permission to hang the banner outside the store's premises, store owner Grace Sison explained.

This latest incident has added to the uncertainty of seeing the ToM festival happening in mid-summer this year, fueled for the most part by the dispute between two not-for-profit (NFP) orgs.

Early last month, the NFP called SPARC brandished its notification by hanging its own banner in front of the Republika Resto and Grill, which is within spitting distance of Salu Salo.

Both banners advertised a ToM festival on the same date, August 19 and 20, and in the same place, Little Manila. The only difference is the organization undertaking the event. 

(Related story at: https://filwebchannelmagazine.blogspot.com/2022/01/taste-of-manila-could-have-been.html).

The two orgs have so far succeeded in sowing confusion, especially among potential corporate and individual sponsors. 

A question that keeps cropping up is the legitimacy of the organizers. Which one has the right to allocate space, pay for it, and be guaranteed a place to sell wares?

City authorities may have to wade soon in this conflict. Which org got approved by the city? Is the city waiving some fees as it did in the past? How much taxpayers' money go into the festival?

Neither IEC nor SPARC is helpful in clearing the air. Outside of the courtroom where IEC filed a complaint against SPARC, among other defendants, including ToM's self-declared founder Rolly Mangante alias kabise, the row is waged on social media, notably on Facebook.

Mangante, a former driver of the Philippine consulate, is the lone trigger in the skirmish. He made the claim he founded ToM but the reality is he stole the idea from a meeting - where he sat in without authority - between City officials and the Consulate. (Related story at: https://filwebchannelmagazine.blogspot.com/2022/12/volume-4-issue-no.html).

Some sponsors, according to knowledgeable informants, had been led to believe that Mangante, who has a habit of looking pitiful when the occasion calls for it, had occupied a "significant position" in the Consulate before he retired.

Even though it was a lie, it stuck, and has been reinforced by constant teasing that referred to him as "congen" or consul general, or "amba" or ambassador. He never corrected the misimpression.

A functionary at SPARC who conceals her true identity by the faux name Marites Tolits has been posting questionable information about ToM and SPARC. Her cohort appears to be a sex kitten who goes by the handle "Lovely Danna". 

(Related story at: https://filwebchannelmagazine.blogspot.com/2022/04/international-journalist-in-taste-of.html).

Why Marites Tolits would resort to such a gimmick - making supposedly official announcement on behalf of SPARC while hiding her true self - flies in the face of transparency. 

(Related story at: https://filwebchannelmagazine.blogspot.com/2022/11/our-troll-neighbors-marites-tolits-and.html).

Her gambit puts into question the integrity of SPARC and its sincerity in holding the festival. SPARC must really believe in disinformation to counter the truth about ToM and Mangante, thus Marites Tolits.

Meanwhile, the warring camps have kept quiet about the lawsuits they brought against each other. Which gives rise to the question: Is ToM going or already gone? (Copyright 2023. All Rights Reserved).