Jessica Soho Says Statements Being Attributed To Her About Alleged Looting Of Bus In Bontoc Are NOT True

Journalist and news reporter Jessica Soho said that the stories and rumors in social media sites saying she made statements alleging that looting happened at the bus accident site in Bontoc, Mt. Province are not true. She posted on the Facebook page for her show State of the Nation With Jessica Soho the following announcement:

"Statements being attributed to me on Facebook on the alleged looting of the bus in Bontoc last Friday, February 7, 2014 are NOT true. I was on leave from the program STATE OF THE NATION (SONA) last Friday.

Other Facebook updates said I made those comments in my program last Saturday.  Those are also NOT true as I do not have a program on Saturdays.  My Sunday program, "Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho", did not tackle the Bontoc bus accident. I also made NO mention about this in succeeding telecasts of SONA."

So there you go. All those posts you've been reading on Facebook about the TV anchor and her alleged statements about looting in Bontoc are not true. Needless to say, to my fellow Cordillerans, before you believe anything you read online, please take the time to verify if it's true or not.

I saw dozens of Facebook posts during the last hour bashing Jessica Soho, calling her names, calling her unprofessional, etc. Well, you've been bashing her for no reason at all. She has never said anything about looting.

Here's Soho's statement in it's entirety:

I repeat, let us learn to control ourselves when reacting to things we read or see online. Knee-jerk reactions will take you nowhere. Just look at what just happened. We made FOOLS of ourselves. We embarrassed ourselves.

So next time, agpanunot tayo bassit apo bago tayo ag-react about issues being posted online. I-verify tayo met ah bassit no agpayso wenno haan.

Actor And Comedian Tado Jimenez Is Among Those Who Died In Bontoc Bus Accident

Actor/comedian Arvin Jimenez who is popularly known for his nickname Tado is among those who were killed when a passenger bus fell off a ravine in barangay Talubin in the town of Bontoc in Mt. Province. The Philippine National Police Cordillera has confirmed that the comedian is indeed among the 14 people who perished. He was 39 years old.

According to a tweet by Dakila Philippines, the reason why Tado went to Bontoc is to work on a project called Life Begins at the Mountain; 40 Mountains Project.

The Florida bus which came from Manila and bound for Bontoc fell of the road Friday morning at about 7:30 am. Aside from the 14 people who died, majority of the 45 to 50 passengers were injured and currently being treated in various hospitals. You can see a partial list of the injured here.

In his Instagram account, one of the last photos that Tado posted is a picture of the Bontoc-bound bus. It was captioned "Long trip, as in trip trip."

Tado has appeared in various television shows and movies during the last decade or so. He earned a cult following when he appeared as himself in the now defunct show Strangebrew on UNTV. His last movie appearance was in My Little Bossings, a comedy which was released just two months ago.

Photos And Updates On The Bus Accident In Talubin, Bontoc

Around 7:30 in the morning of February 7 (Friday), a Florida passenger bus fell off the road within the vicinity of barangay Talubin in the town of Bontoc in Mt. Province. The bus which was on its way to Bontoc from Manila was carrying around 45 to 50 passengers. Fourteen were killed and 31 others were injured.

Contrary to previous reports saying the bus fell of a 500-meter ravine, an updated and more accurate estimate puts it at about 120 meters. Among the victims are two foreigners. One Canadian and one Dutch. Comedian Arvin Jimenez who is more well-known as Tado is also among the fatalities.

A partial list of the names of the injured passengers identified 29 people. However, the latest reports mentioned over 30 passengers who were wounded.

This is the first road accident to have happened in the area (the Baguio-Bontoc road) for this year that took so many lives. It can be recalled that in November of last year, a van accident along Halsema Highway also took two lives including that of Eufemia Lam-en who was president of the Mountain Province State Polytechnic College in Bontoc.

Every year, the roads and highways leading into Benguet and Mt. Province are the scenes of such tragedies. This has earned the Halsema Highway the distinction of being one of the most dangerous roads in the country. Needless to say, something has to be done about it. It's time to impose more stringent measures to help protect people and passengers plying this route.
Here are a few photos from the accident site. All photos are by Wonder Ful via facebook.