Sara Duterte-Carpio asks, why ‘Manila’?

DAVAO CITY, Philippines — Presidential daughter and Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio has questioned the choice of the iconic song “Manila” by the Filipino band Hotdog during the entry of the Philippine delegation in the athletes’ parade at the opening of the 30th Southeast Asian Games at the Philippine Arena in Bocaue, Bulacan the other night. 

“Did Lapu-Lapu die for Manila?” Duterte-Carpio asked over the weekend.

She pointed out that Filipino athletes carried the Philippine flag but the “Manila” song was played instead.

Duterte-Carpio insisted that the song played should have been something inclusive of the whole country and not just anything that represents Manila, being considered the capital of the country.

“Wag po natin gawing excuse (Let’s not make an excuse of an) upbeat danceable song. Kami nagimbento ng budots. Kaloko man oi. (We invented budots. It’s foolish).We should be inclusive when we want to encourage our countrymen to cheer,” she posted on Instagram, referring to a popular dance move.

She said she has no qualms about being branded “nega” or negative when it comes to her thinking the song inappropriate.

“Yes, nega ako, bakit? ( I’m nega. Why?) I am a Filipino but I don’t have one drop of Tagalog blood in me. Pure Vismin by birth and Ilocos by marriage. #bastabisayahilas add na natin (let’s add) German American for the glam,” the presidential daughter said.

Dennis Garcia, Hotdog bassist and brother of the late lead singer Rene Garcia, wrote in a public Facebook post: “Rene and I created Manila not thinking of ourselves as Tagalogs, Bisayans or Ilokanos but as Filipinos missing the Philippines.”

Dennis also said that he had no intention of alienating Filipinos who are not from Manila.

“When we were teens, all planes from abroad landed in Manila, and only in Manila. So months after we landed from a yearlong gig in Hawaii… my mindset in writing about missing the Motherland was… Manila. No intention of excluding any of my kababayans from the song’s sentiments.”