Psychologist answers libel, child abuse raps

Child psychologist Ma. Lourdes “Honey” Carandang and blogger Froilan Grate have answered the libel and child abuse complaints filed against them by Jojo and Diana Suan, parents of a controversial “Willing Willie” child contestant in the Quezon City Prosecutor’s Office.

Though many cried child abuse after the 6-year-old was asked to do a gyrating “macho dancer” routine by the show’s host Willie Revillame, on April 13, the Suans specifically pointed to Carandang and bloggers Grate and John Silva in a libel complaint filed in the Quezon City Prosecutor’s Office.

The Suans insisted their son was not abused, and critics saying otherwise had brought “dishonor, discredit and contempt” to the family.

The couple took particular offense to a letter Carandang sent to the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB), where she condemned the alleged abuse done by Revillame and the show’s producers to the boy.

Carandang clarified that she sent the letter only after her opinion was sought by the MTRCB. “I was asked my professional opinion and I gave it,” Carandang said. “As a clinical child psychologist and national social scientist, it is my duty to give my opinion on these matters and I stand by my opinion.”

Grate also included a perjury counter-charge against the Suans who claimed he had spread online a “maliciously spliced and edited video” of the boy’s performance on the show.