My, my apologies

First of all, I would like to apologize to the University of San Carlos (USC) for mentioning the school's name in my previous piece entitled “Nonstop Increase.” This writer used an outdated list of schools that would increase their fees which bore the university's name.

To the administrators of the university, it was truly an honest mistake. It was not my intention to put the name of the university in a bad light. Moreover, I commend USC for NOT implementing a tuition fee increase this year. Fr. Louie Punzalan of the External Affairs office set the record straight that USC did not and will not hike their tuition fee this year and that is something to applaud about.

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Comedian Vice Ganda finally apologized to Jessica Soho on national television through his noontime show. Soho, on the other hand, accepted the apology but hopes and prays that it was “done with the purest intentions and determination to put the issue behind.”

Last May 17 during his Smart-Araneta Concert, Vice Ganda's gang rape spiels sparked the conflict between the two TV personalities. In a Youtube video from his concert, Vice Ganda jokingly placed Jessica Soho in a rape situation and made fun of Soho's weight. Since then social media criticized Vice for his carelessness and Soho tried to keep the pain in.

The criticisms were right. Vice Ganda did offend Jessica Soho. First of all, why would he talk about a celebrity from another station? It seemed like a subtle way of competing against ratings. Second, rape is a very sensitive topic. It is not worth any joke, stand-up comedy and what-not. Rape victims are protected by the law and mentioning them only adds insult to the injury. Lastly, there must have been other stuff to laugh about.

But now that Vice Ganda has apologized to Soho, more criticisms poured in. On Twitter, fans have been saying that the apology is useless because the damage has been done. Others are also saying that a mere sorry was not enough, adding that he should pay Soho for the stain brought to her career.

However they may want to judge to Vice Ganda, an apology is an apology. When a person apologizes, whether in writing or in speech, he/she already accepted the mistake he/she committed. And by that, the person wants to redeem him/herself by asking for forgiveness from the offended party.

I've learned in church that forgiveness is more than a big word, it is a big thing. Our Lord Jesus Christ was the perfect model of forgiveness as he forgave his disciples even if he was denied and betrayed a lot of times. And more than that, he forgave sinners like us. Forgiveness is just like grace, it is undeserved. But by your pure heart and honest contentions, you are granted it.

Apologies are needed for both parties to move on from the past, it is a marker to start over. “To err is human,” and Vice is human. He has every right to say sorry to those he has offended. Now, it's time for all to move on.