“Let him rest.”
This was Pinoy netizens’ and fans’ plea to people who were allegedly using the late actor Rico Yan’s grave for online content.
Videos capturing online users’ “experiences” from visiting the grave of the popular 90s heartthrob seemed to have noticeably become a trend among Pinoy netizens after more users followed suit in uploading online content taken at his gravesite in Manila Memorial Park in Parañaque City.
@sweetly.cel After 23yrs, i finally visited Rico Yan for the first in my life🥹❤️ #ricoyan #rycb #rycbforever #fyp ♬ I've Fallen for You – Jamie Rivera
In one video an individual took of himself while visiting the grave captured him sitting beside the actor’s grave and even hugged it.
Some even shared their own “rating” of their experience at the location and even described Rico’s resting place as a “tourist spot”.
This gained mixed reactions online with several users calling out the behavior of the late actor’s fans as “obsessive”, “disturbing”, and “disrespectful” for using the deceased for content and “clout chasing”.
Meanwhile, an X user defended the gesture of visiting the actor’s tomb while mentioning that the latter is buried near his grandfather, Manuel Yan, who was the Former Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).
The revered soldier and diplomat, Yan was among those who opposed the declaration of Martial Law during Ferdinand Marcos’ regime
Amidst the ongoing trend, a fan page dedicated to Rico and his love team with ex-girlfriend Claudine Barretto, “Rico Yan and Claudine Barretto,” addressed the online content involving the former.
“We are aware that Rico has been trending on every social media platform since the past few weeks or months, and we are extremely happy to know that people are still appreciating and remembering him up to this day after more than 2 decades,” the statement read.
The page, however, criticized those who visit the actor’s grave solely for content rather than to pay tribute.
“Yet, lately, things are becoming different in a way that they are getting alarming already. We have been seeing a lot of accounts who obviously are using Rico only just for entertainment purposes or in other words – for clout; which is something needs to be stopped dahil hindi na ito tama,” the fan page expressed.
The page urged people to stop using Rico for clout and stressed that sharing visits on social media insincerely for personal gain is inappropriate.
“We are also here to call out people, social media pages, and accounts who use Rico Yan only for clout and entertainment purposes. We are asking you to please stop it. May we continue remembering him with nothing but love & RESPECT.
“If you have nothing good to say towards another person, most especially to a deceased person, it will be best to be quiet and not say anything at all. We are deeply saddened by it. We are sad for Rico, but we believe his family is more unhappy about this,” the fan page appealed.
