with CARLO J. CAPARAS

WHAT DOES A CARLO J. CAPARAS CAN SAY TO THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE BEEN QUESTIONING HIS NATIONAL ARTIST AWARD?

1. I deserve this award. These people - those who keep on clucking like chickens over [the award] - they are all ‘political slaves.
2. They are just using me to hit at the president [Arroyo].
3. These people are making it appear as if I asked for [the award]… I didn’t ask for it
4. They also say that the president went through the selection blindly by picking me…it is so unfair…the president saw my hard work…saw how much I contributed to society through the arts…through my work… and decided to give me the award.
5. A Presidential Award is given by the President. Why are we questioning her powers? The president does her selection with great deliberation…she studies these things carefully.
6. I don’t know why these people are doing this to me…it saddens me that our industry had been invaded by elitists…sectoral artists who refuse to see the merits of my work only because I came from the masses
7. Until today, my works have been sustaining a great sector of our ailing industry. I ask this question of other National Artists: Have you helped anyone in your work? I did. I helped so many. Not only did my works entertain, it also provided jobs for many.