Volume 7, Issue No. 48
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, May 13, 2026
~ A pack of lies detrimental to a federal agency doesn't seem to affect the ethnic media organization headquartered in Toronto which continues to harbor its husband-and-wife proponents who had preyed on two unsuspecting Filipino writers reporting for a government-initiated journalism program.
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EDITORS VICTIMIZING REPORTERS
Ethnic Media Group
Harbors Rogue Members
By ROMEO P. MARQUEZ
Editor, The Filipino Web Channel
“Away, you mouldy rogue, away!” ―
TORONTO - One need not look far to realize the seriousness of the ethical and potentially legal breaches committed by Hermie Garcia and Mila A. Garcia, the conjugal editors of the now-defunct supermarket tabloid The Philippine Reporter (TPR).
They weaved a pack of lies repeatedly, hustling two TPR writers and denying them their money the editors didn't own to begin with, and masking the wrongdoing by putting the blame on Canadian Heritage, which funds the government project.
The deception held for months until a disgruntled TPR staff writer, Michelle Chermaine Ramos, took it upon herself to ask the National Ethnic Press and Media Council of Canada (NEPMCC) why her pay as reporter for Local Journalism Initiative (LJI) had stalled.
LJI is a federal government outreach administered by NEPMCC and implemented by its members, in this instance, TPR, where Ms. Ramos and an intern in Edmonton, Alberta were, in addition to their regular job at TPR, the accredited LJI reporters.
The layers of fraud the Garcia spouses had created and articulated to Ms. Ramos in writing were peeled one after another by a top NEPMCC official who told her their disingenuous conduct was "technically criminal."
Though there's acknowledgement by the official of the couple's wrongdoing, they continue to be members, still in good standing apparently, to the prejudice of ethical standards journalists are supposed to uphold.
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In fact, as of April 13, 2026, the Garcia couple and three TPR workers - Rick Esguerra, Lui Queano, and Veronica Cusi - are listed as having attended a zoom meeting of NEPMCC on that day.
Ms. Ramos' complaint filed with Canadian Heritage and NEPMCC three years ago remains largely ignored or unacted for reasons not explained by either or both the agencies.
For a full understanding of what her complaint was all about, here are the facts that are undisputed:
1. Hermie Garcia and Mila A. Garcia fabricated the lie that Ms. Ramos' salary and that of an intern, had been on hold due to some allegedly unfulfilled requirements.
2. To reinforce that lie, they invented another lie - that Canadian Heritage had frozen the two writers' salaries as reporters for LJI.
3. To sustain lies #1 and #2, they came up with a fictional "grant guy" in Canadian Heritage who was supposedly impeding the release of the reporters' salaries.
4. To shield themselves from inquiries, the couple further lied to the effect that grant money allocated by Canadian Heritage to NEPMCC came in trickles, which caused further delays.
5. The couple withheld the fact that the full amount for LJI reporters' salaries had been released by the NEPMCC to the Garcias way ahead of LJI implementation.
All these uncontroverted instances led Maria Saras Voutsinas, NEPMCC executive and managing director, to tell Ms. Ramos that the acts by the Garcia spouses were "technically criminal."
According to the NEPMCC's Statement of Principles, "Journalists who abuse their power for selfish motives or unworthy purposes betray the public trust." (italics mine for emphasis).
It points out that "Our legal traditions give the press privilege and protection. We must return this trust by practicing our craft ethically." Further, it says "News organizations should not tell journalists to commit illegal or improper acts."
NEPMCC has been deeply engrossed in securing more grant money from Canadian Heritage to subsidize some projects, including LJI. As of this writing, NEPMCC has not reported on the outcome of its meeting with Canadian Heritage on Friday, May 8, 2026.
Meanwhile, some basic questions are unanswered: Why did Hermie Garcia lie about Canadian Heritage, in effect smearing its good name? Why did he lie about NEPMCC and compromise its integrity? Why did he and wife Mila A. Garcia lie to Ms. Ramos and the intern about their salaries? What was their motive? (Copyright 2026. All Rights Reserved).
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