NCIP: Apo Whang-od did not give her consent to teach tattooing at Nas Academy

A statement from the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) surfaced online stating that Whang-od did not agree to teach an online course.

File photo: Nas Daily and Apo Whang-od

The legendary tattoo artist allegedly wasn't aware of any contract

To recall, we previously reported that an Arab Israeli vlogger Nuseir Yassin, more popularly known as Nas Daily took down its Nas Academy course featuring Apo Whang-od. This is after the tattoo legend's grandniece Grace Palicas posted on Facebook that her grandmother did not sign any contract to do lessons for Nas Academy.

Screenshot of the press release from NCIP from Twitter

According to the press release of NCIP, it based its statements on interviews conducted last August 17 with Maria Oggay (Whang-od's full name), her family, and the elders and leader of Barangay Buscayan in Tinglayan, her hometown, in Kalinga.

NCIP explained that Whang-od was "not aware of any contract and she did not affix her thumb mark in any contract for this account.

However, Nusseir Yassin insisted that Nas Daily had a protocol of asking the permission of its subjects and their families. Allegedly, the vlogger posted a video showing Whang-od going through the contract and affixing her thumbprint to it.

NCIP countered that there is an "apparent disparity"  between the thumb mark Whang-od put in the contract and the one she affixed to a plain piece of paper for validation. 

Moreover, the agency said that Whang-od’s niece and representative Estella Palangdao, Whang-od's said that the "provisions of the contract were not explained to them except that they were made to sign the contract of filming, interview, photography, and release of such."

Meanwhile, the elders and leaders from the Brgy. Buscalan unanimously affirmed that the online platform by Nas Daily could "lead to the demise of their culture-driven tourism industry." NCPI added further,

Teaching of said cultural manifestation or expression in an open platform accessible to millions of people would render it generic and thus it would lose its authenticity and cultural meaning.

The NCIP said it would provide  Apo Whang-od and the community with legal assistance should they want to pursue legal actions. 

Nas Daily quickly responded through a statement posted online, saying it would cooperate with the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples on the Whang-od issue.

What do you think?

Via: Inquirer