Journalist and former ABS-CBN News Channel (ANC) anchor Christian Esguerra has responded to the statement issued by Caritas Philippines regarding the removal of an episode of ‘YSpeak 2.0’ in which he appeared as a guest.
In a Facebook post on Monday, June 1, Esguerra shared Caritas Philippines’ official statement and expressed his views on the decision to take down the episode.
“It’s easy to preach ‘civics’ in the comfort of an air-conditioned studio,” Esguerra wrote.
“But the true test comes when things become uncomfortable and fear, whether real or imagined, sets in,” he added.
The journalist also pointed out what he described as an irony surrounding the situation, noting that during his guest appearance, one of the topics discussed was self-censorship.
According to Esguerra, the removal of the episode represented what he considered the worst form of self-censorship.
“I am genuinely curious about the ‘internal editorial guidelines and basic values of Caritas Philippines’ that needed to be considered in taking out the episode,” he said.
The controversy stemmed from a segment titled “YSpeak Your Mind,” where Esguerra was asked to associate one word with various political personalities whose photos were shown to him.
Among the figures mentioned were Vice President Sara Duterte, whom Esguerra described using the word “evil,” and Senator Rodante Marcoleta, whom he referred to as a “liar.”
Earlier, Caritas Philippines Executive Director Fr. Tito Caluag issued a statement explaining the decision to remove the episode.
In a post published on the organization’s Facebook page, Caluag said he personally requested the takedown as the program’s producer.
“It was a difficult decision to make, but there are internal editorial guidelines and basic values of Caritas Philippines I needed to consider,” Caluag stated.
He added that other factors also influenced the decision and that these had been discussed with the people involved.
Caluag emphasized that ‘YSpeak 2.0’ was created as a safe space for young Filipinos to engage in meaningful discussions and express their views responsibly.
“We want our youth to have the platform to speak the truth with courage, but also to take all things into consideration,” he said. “We are primarily a civics formation and education program and hope to be as inclusive as possible.”
The priest also revealed that discussions were ongoing with the program’s hosts regarding how the show would move forward and what lessons could be learned from the incident.
