Indulgence

What is owed

Billy Joel
I have a theory that the only original things we ever do are mistakes.

Back in the early nineties, my Dad scored a big hit with Batang X, a movie about 5 children born with extraordinary powers who were made into a fighting force by the stranded alien Axis. These children then were taken in by the eccentric scientist Kwago (or was it Quago?) who taught them to use their powers for the good of mankind. Sounds corny, huh? It's the usual tale of super-heroes and it's always a matter of the telling and the presentation and it was done well considering everything -- budget, Filipino tastes and aesthetics and whatever else was in the air during the early nineties and it all worked out to the joy of the Filipno movie-goers because it was a hit.

Well, Mother Lily owned Regal Entertainment who produced the film insisted that the idea for Batang X was hers. That's a flat out lie. My Dad conceptualised the whole thing. Proof? He gave all his rough sketches and the first idea to Viva before he showed it to Mother Lily. She was the second person they approached when Viva declined to produce it.

So they went to court. My Dad won and Mother Lily made an appeal. The year is now 2006 and finally the courts have awarded everything to my Dad. The courts have ruled in favour of my Father. Back when they won in 2000 (or was it 2001?), they said Mother Lily had to pay the amount of over a million pesos for stealing the intellectual property of my Father. That's when she made her appeal. Now, the courts still ruled in favour of my Father but decreased the sentence to 650,000 pesos. Why? I don't know. But that was the ruling of the courts and my Father agreed to it.

Mother Lily called my Dad and asked if she could only pay 300,000. My Dad argued that she was in the wrong, the courts ruled the price and if she could kindly pay what was owed. She made a hiss-fit and then demanded that the price was too high and now refuses to pay a single cent. How a person can decide not to pay something is beyond me! What right does anybody have to refuse the order or ruling of the court (no matter how questionable our courts are)? In her defense, she did offer my Dad a 6-picture contract in return. Right (dripping with sarcasm). A 6-picture contract still involves my Father having to work, and not that he's above working, he'd love it but (1) when did Mother Lily ever finish a 6-picture contract, (2) they are in talks about putting a movie together and despite having sent a story-line, after 3 weeks, we have yet to hear anything about the project. How can she offer a 6-picture project if she can't even get one started and (3) what is that 6-picture contract, anyway? The point is that the courts ruled that what she did was criminal, stealing the intellectual property of someone else, and she has to pay, and she thinks she can get away with it by having my Dad direct and put together 6 pictures for her? That totally takes away the idea of justice. She owes my Dad that money and it's the principal of justice that needs to be addressed; it's not about the money, it's about not letting people think that they can get away with anything. A 6-picture contract destroys the idea of justice, because, by the nature of it, Mother Lily still gets something in return and the money my Dad makes from those films were worked for and so, in return, she didn't pay him anything. She gets away with stealing.

Justice is not something you can bend or twist. I believe it's an absolute. When you decide to give mercy or choose to be ruthless, that is your interpretation of what's good and what's right. But the truth is, justice is an exact thing and right now, that's what I want for my Father. Justice. Right now, that is what I want for this world. Justice. People keep thinking they are above the law and will use whatever excuse they can think of to get away from the responsibility of their actions, the consequences of their movements. I'm poor or the price is too high or he/she drove me to it, kasi eh or I didn't know. You can say whatever it is you want, but the truth of the matter is, you did wrong. You have to pay what is owed.

posted by wanggo @ 8:52 AM