FACT-CHECK: Mahjong scene from ‘Maid in Malacañang’ not pirated

Claim: The Cory Aquino mahjong scene in ‘Maid in Malacañang’ was pirated from the movie’s premiere night

RATING: FALSE

The tabloid newspaper “Bandera” erroneously reported on Aug. 3 that a viral clip of Corazon Aquino playing mahjong with nuns was likely pirated from the premiere of the Marcos propaganda movie “Maid in Malacañang.”

Bandera reporter Ervin Santiago made the claim in the now-deleted story titled “Darryl Yap sa lahat ng kumakastigo sa Maid in Malacañang: Pumila kayo, mahaba ang pila, magkita-kita tayo sa dulo,” attributing the information to netizens.

“Kaya ang suspetsa ng karamihan, baka raw may namirata na ng pelikula sa ginanap na premiere night sa SM The Block at dito nanggaling ang mga litrato ng kontrobersyal na eksena ni Giselle sa movie,” Santiago wrote.

(That is what many suspect; that the film may have been pirated during its premiere night at SM The Block and this was were photos of Giselle’s controversial scenes from the movie came from.)

The writer was referring to Giselle Sanchez, who has drawn flak for her comments defending her portrayal of democracy icon Corazon Aquino in the movie.

However, the clip was not pirated from the movie’s premiere night, but rather, was uploaded by Sen. Imee Marcos, who financed the movie, on her Facebook page on July 31. 

The clip drew mixed reactions on social media, with many criticizing its lack of historicity. Members of the religious, especially the Carmelite sisters of Cebu where Aquino sought refuge during the 1996 EDSA revolt, denounced the film.

“The attempt to distort history is reprehensible. Depicting the nuns as playing mah-jong with Cory Aquino is malicious. It would suggest that while the fate of the country was in peril, we could afford to leisurely play games.The truth was that we were then praying, fasting, and making other forms of sacrifices for peace in this country and for the people’s choice to prevail,” said Sr. Mary Melanie Costillas, prioress of the Carmelite Monastery in Cebu, in a statement.

The author of the article “In The Grotto of the Pink Sisters,” which movie director Daryl Yap showed as his proof that the nuns were playing mahjong, made a clarification on the compound-complex sentence that was the basis of Yap’s claim.

“In my 1989 article on Cory Aquino (see attached) I wrote 1) she visited the Pink Sisters to pray; 2) she was a friend of Sister Christine Yap; 3) Christine Yap gave talks to affluent women who sometimes played mah-jongg. No mention of Aquino or Yap playing mah-jongg,” Anne Nelson said in a Twitter post. Adrian Parungao

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