TV host called out by Kiko apologizes to Sharon
A TV news anchor apologized on Tuesday to actress Sharon Cuneta after her husband, Sen. Kiko Pangilinan, called him out for bringing her name up on air during a discussion of the anomalies concerning flood control projects.
“On behalf of our program, and from myself personally, I extend our deepest apologies to Ms. Sharon Cuneta for the pain and distress this has caused… Since our program was the cause of your hurt, we are truly and profoundly sorry,” said Nelson Lubao of the Net25 TV news program “Sa Ganang Mamamayan.”
Marcoleta interview
Pangilinan had earlier called on the TV network to apologize to his wife after Lubao’s co-anchor, Gen Subardiaga, urged Cuneta to convince the senator to step down from the Senate blue ribbon Committee for supposedly proposing an investigation into the flood control projects separate from the probe already initiated by the panel.
The program was then conducting an interview with the committee chair, Sen. Rodante Marcoleta, on Aug. 29.
Marcoleta “expressed feeling insulted by the statements of Senator Kiko Pangilinan, a committee member, to establish a separate body to investigate the same subject, as if the committee is incompetent to do its mandate,” Lubao then said.
However, it was actually Senate Minority Leader Vicente “Tito” Sotto who made the proposal for a separate probe, and Pangilinan merely expressed support for it. The suggestion called for the creation of a body to called the Independent People’s Commission.
“My wife Sharon… has nothing to do with the corruption in flood control,” Pangilinan said in protest.
Addressing Net25, he said, “Your anchors disrespected Sharon, insulted her, and wounded her feelings by dragging her into this issue.”
‘Appeal to emotion’
In his apology, Lubao said, “Whether our method of commentary meets that specific definition is a matter of opinion and debate. However, what is not debatable is the result. Senator Pangilinan has publicly stated that his wife was hurt by our words, and I take him at his word.”
But despite the apology, Lubao said Pangilinan’s “response was a textbook example of the appeal to emotion, specifically an appeal to pity.”
It did not address “the substantive question about his conflicting stance”, he said, without elaborating
Subardiaga shared Lubao’s post on social media but has yet to issue his own apology.
