Wednesday, 20 January 2016

Joel Cruz addresses nanny discrimination issue

MANILA, Philippines- Fragrance mogul Joel Cruz came under fire after a photo of the christening of his twins spread like wildfire on social media.

In the Instagram post by journalist Julius Babao, Cruz’s twins, Prince Harry and Prince Harvey, were seen carried by their nannies who were wearing surgical masks and hairnets. The photo sparked controversy after several netizens alleged Cruz of discrimination against the caregivers of his twins.

Joel Cruz babies Christening
Joel Cruz's sons Prince Harvey and Prince Harry christening. Photo Credit: Julius Babao/Instagram
On Wednesday, January 20, Cruz decided to break his silence and release a statement about the issue. Through a text message sent to ABS-CBN News reporter Mario Dumaual, Cruz revealed that he had the nannies wear masks when taking care of his twins, as advised by his pediatrician.

The twins, who were conceived through in vitro fertilization (IVF) and were not breastfed, had a weaker immune system, according to Cruz.

"Ayaw kong maging pabaya sa kanilang lahat at sinusunod ko lang din po ang advise ng pediatrician na mag-mask kami, nurse at mga nanny kapag close contact sa mga bata from birth until two years old,” Cruz explained.

(I don’t want to be negligent and I was simply following the advice of the pediatrician that we, nurse and nannies should wear a mask when in close contact with the babies from birth until two years old.)

"...Ang kabutihan po ng paggamit ng mask ay maiwasan ang droplets o mga common organisms at 'yung ang nagiging reverse isolation. Ito po ay protection hindi lang ng mga anak ko kundi pati rin ng mga yayas at kaming lahat nanagsusuot ng mask,” Cruz added.

(The good thing about wearing a mask is that it prevents droplets or common organisms and this will become reverse isolation. It not only protects my kids as it also protects the nannies and everyone who wears the mask.)

Cruz insisted: “Walang discrimination po dito at sa talang buhay ko ay ni-isang tao ay hindi po ako marunong mag-discriminate!”

(There’s no discrimination in here. Throughout my life, I have never discriminated a single person.)

Back in 2013, Cruz disclosed that his nannies for his older set of twins, Prince Sean and Princess Synne, had nannies who worked in shifts and wore uniforms as well as face masks in order to protect the twins from their coughs and sniffles.

"For me, they are not the usual babies who were conceived through natural methods. They need extra care. They might be easily susceptible to diseases. For one year, I have to do this,” Cruz told Inquirer.

According to a 2007 study, children born following IVF treatment are almost twice as likely to suffer poor health as well as birth defects. -Mini/TheSummitExpress

LOOK: Paolo Ballesteros transforms into Miss Universe Pia Wurtzbach

MANILA, Philippines - Few days before the grand homecoming of Miss Universe 2015 Pia Wurtzbach, Eat Bulaga host Paolo Ballesteros made the much-awaited 'makeup transformation' of the Filipino pride.

Paolo Balleteros morphed into Miss Universe Pia Wurtzbach.
Paolo Balleteros morphed into Miss Universe Pia Wurtzbach.
Photo Credit: Paolo Ballesteros and Pia Wurtzbach Instagram
On his Instagram account Wednesday night, Paolo shared his latest piece, which captioned: "PIA ALONZO NYURTZBACH 26, PHILIPPINES."

The photo went viral online amassing over 25,000 Likes and 600 comments on image sharing site as of press time.


Some netizens commented that Paolo was able to copy the Filipina-German's complexion and cheekbones while the others said the opposite.

RELATED STORY
LOOK: Paolo Ballesteros morphs into Miss Colombia

In the past years, Ballesteros has impressed the world for his impersonation of different local and international personalities. Being the great grandson of National Artist Fernando Amorsolo, Paolo exhibits artistry using make-up.

He has also copied the look of Angelina Jolie, Marilyn Monroe, Mariah Carey, Audrey Hepburn, Tyra Banks, Nicole Kidman, Megan Young, Ariella Arida, and Nora Aunor, among others.

Nadine Lustre, James Reid travel video 'Always' goes viral

MANILA, Philippines - A video featuring the California trip of the phenomenal love team JaDine, composed of James Reid and Nadine Lustre, has caught the fancy of netizens.

JaDine travel video Always
Lustre’s first video blog has earned praises from netizens.
PHOTO CREDIT: push.abs-cbn.com
Amassing thousands of views barely a day after Lustre uploaded it on YouTube, the three-minute video has earned praises from netizens particularly because Lustre herself made it.

“All nighter on this one. But it was definitely worth it! Enjoy,” Lustre wrote in the video’s description.

Aside from the impressive cinematography highlighting the streets of San Francisco, the snowy landscape of Lake Tahoe as well as clips from their fans day in Sacramento, netizens also commended Lustre’s brilliant choice of music. Lustre used Panama’s hit “Always” as background music for the travel video.

A video posted by Nadine Lustre (@nadzlustre) on


Also titled “Always”, Lustre’s first video blog uploaded on her YouTube channel on January 18 has received rave reviews from netizens.

YouTube user Flor Cagas commented: “I hope Nadz and James would collaborate in making more videos together in the future. They both have a talent in film making. The cinematography is beautiful. Video editing is so great. I wonder if it's her first time to create such a wonderful video. You could feel the emotions that the song conveys... Perfect! Both of them have a future behind the camera as well.”

“Beautifully done, a story to their journey. Has lots of emotions and class ! congratulations Nadine , you really have the talent and passion for it. This is just a start, I will be waiting for more of your videos,” wrote YouTube user Pamela Lagura.

Since the video has beautifully captured the “kilig” moments of the screen sweethearts, fans can’t help but speculate on the real score between the On the Wings of Love (OTWOL) stars. However, the two have constantly denied being more than friends.

Lustre and Reid became household names after starring in the 2014 film adaptation of the hit novel “Diary ng Panget”.

Watch the full video here.

-Mini/TheSummitExpress