Tito Sotto finally spoke up amid the controversies surrounding the longest-running noontime show Eat Bulaga.
The former senator and prime host of Eat Bulaga alongside Vic Sotto and Joey De Leon, took offense against the statements made by Dapitan City Mayor Bullet Jalosjos, who is also the chief finance officer of Television and Production Exponent (TAPE) Inc. TAPE Inc. which serves as the producer of the noontime show.
“I am disappointed, at the very least. I am disappointed at what’s happening,” Sotto stated in a tell-all interview on Updated with Nelson Canlas, as he addressed some issues Eat Bulaga is facing, including the new composition of TAPE Inc., and planned changes in the show.
‘Yun ang gustong mangyari, kaya nga nung nagusap-usap kami, ‘Hindi pwede. We will be sacrificing the program. ‘Pag ka ganyan hindi tayo magkakasundo-sundo. Baka magkahiwa-hiwalay tayo,” said Sotto.
“Okay na sana except lately, biglang a member of the board tells media something else,” Tito said, referring to the “inaccurate” and “false” remarks made by a board member about Eat Bulaga.
In an interview on Fast Talk With Boy Abunda, Jalosjos earlier said that Eat Bulaga will undergo “rebonding” rather than the presumed “rebranding.”
“Rebonding ng kumpanya, rebonding ng pamilya sa ‘Eat Bulaga,’ rebonding ng executives, rebonding din ng GMA,” said Jalosjos while assuring that a “more improved” Eat Bulaga is underway.
Sotto also addressed the allegations that Eat Bulaga was losing profit.
“Nagtataka kasi kami, paano mo sasabihing nalulugi ang Eat Bulaga or nalulugi ang TAPE, baka ang TAPE ang nalulugi,” he said, relating that Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) documents showed that TAPE Inc. had P213 million net profit in 2021.
Sotto added that the producer supposedly gained more profit in 2022 following the elections and easing of pandemic restrictions. “But then again, we were informed that a little over P400 million of political ads that were placed in EB vanished,” he said.
Sotto also disproved that TAPE Inc. does not owe Vic and Joey money despite Jalosjos’ refuting that Vic was owed by P2 billion.
“Ang laki ng utang kay Vic at kay Joey. Mahigit tig-30 million pesos ang utang sa kanila…for 2022 alone,” he said.
While Sotto maintained that Tito, Vic, and Joey are here to stay, expressed his grievance over the remarks of them being “retained” in the show, saying that the term used is “improper.”
“Para naman napakakawawa namin.
“Mag-iingat naman kayo sa mga bitaw ng salita dahil nakaksakit yung salita ninyo. Kami pigil na pigil kami, ang tagal na namang gusto ilabas lahat yan pero pinipigil namin pagkatapos biglang babanatan niyo kami ng ganyan.
