A supposedly entertaining number put Willie Revillame in the hot seat again.
In Willing Willie's March 12 episode, he wasn't aware of what would transpire in the "Wiltime Bigtime" segment until the 10-year-old kid named Jan-Jan danced a la "macho dancer." The tag came from the controversial host himself.
Everything was supposedly done in the spirit of fun. The studio audience was clapping and cheering.
Willie aknowledged the boy's showmanship by saying, "Ang galing!"
He also exclaimed jokingly, "Ganyan na ho ang hirap ng buhay ng tao. Jan-Jan, siyempre nagsasayaw siya bilang macho dancer sa edad niyang 'yan, para sa kanyang mahal na pamilya!"
But numerous viewers discovered the portion tasteless. The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) even known as it "child abuse."
In CHR's press statement, chairperson Loretta Rosales wrote:
"This is an exploitation of the child's innocence and demeans his inherent dignity for entertainment's sake. The several pressures exerted on Jan-Jan by the Television program's host, audience, and his parents to perform a humiliating act in exchange for ten thousand pesos constitute child abuse as defined in Section 10 of R.A. No. 7610 or 'Special Protection of Youngsters Against Abuse, Exploitation, and Discrimination Act.'"