Quezon City 4th District Representative Bong Suntay is facing backlash over controversial remarks he made about actress Anne Curtis.
The incident stemmed during a House Committee on Justice deliberation on the impeachment complaint against Vice President Sara Duterte.
At one point in the discussion, Suntay cited a personal example involving Curtis as he compared it to Duterte’s past statement against President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., arguing that both were merely products of imagination.
The controversial statement he referenced was when Duterte said she had ordered someone to kill the president in retaliation if she were killed.
“Alam mo minsan nasa Shangri-La ako, nakita ko si Anne Curtis, ang ganda-ganda pala niya. You know, may desire sa loob ko na nag-init talaga, na-imagine ko na lang kung anong p’wedeng mangyari. Pero syempre hanggang imagination na lang ’yun. Hindi naman siguro ako pwede kasuhan kung ano ’yung na-imagine ko,” the lawmaker said.
Several members of the committee immediately called out the remark, saying it was irrelevant to the issue being tackled. Some lawmakers moved to have his statement stricken from the record.
“It is just the start of the Women’s Month and I don’t think that we should be hearing such comments from our dear colleague. We are not censoring anything, but we are reminding them, that in fact, we should support women by not saying this statement,” said San Juan Rep. Bel Zamora.
Online criticism intensified after Suntay defended his remarks, insisting there was “nothing sexual” or “immoral” about what he said, and even suggested that Curtis should take it as a “compliment.”
“There’s nothing sexual dun sa sinabi ko. Nothing immoral. I said may na-imagine ako. I think there’s nothing wrong. There’s nothing even sexual sa statement na ’yon,” he clarified.
“Sabi ko, ‘Ang ganda-ganda niya.’ And I think she should take it as a compliment that I feel and I believe that she’s very beautiful,” Suntay added.
As of writing, Curtis has yet to issue any statements regarding Suntay’s remarks.
