Willing Willi willingly bows out

Willie says he was not edging Janjan to dance
Look at this photo. Judge for yourself.

In an emotional speech before hundreds of Willing Willie fans, controversial host Willie Revillame announced that his six-month show Willing Willi will temporarily stop airing its episodes starting tomorrow, April 9.This came after CDO Foodsphere Incorporated, the last sponsor to abandon the beleaguered host, announced that it is pulling out all of its ads, shortly after Unilever and P&G pulled their ads too. Inquirer reports:

“True to our statement dated March 31, 2011, this is to announce that our sponsorship in Willing Willie will already end on April 9, 2011,” the food firm said in a brief statement posted on its website.CDO last Thursday said the controversial episode on “Willing Willie”, where television host Willie Revillame was seen egging on a six-year-old boy to simulate a striptease, “jolted us out of our comfort zones” even as it maintained it was “in no position to pass judgement” on the issue.Earlier Friday, the country’s largest pawnshop chain, Cebuana Lhuillier Pawnshop, announced it would pull out ads from “Willing Willie” beginning Monday.Jollibee Foods Corporation last Saturday announced it was “holding off” ad placements of its newly-acquired Mang Inasal restaurant chain from “Willing Willie.”Other multinational giants followed suit. On Tuesday, Procter & Gamble Philippines said it suspended advertising on the show “while the incident is being reviewed and investigated by authorities.”Del Monte Pacific Ltd. also said it was pulling out sponsorship of the beleaguered primetime game show.The TV network has since apologized for the episode and installed an internal ombudsman to avoid a repeat of the incident.”

Revillame revealed that the decision to cut the show came after a meeting with TV5 President Rey Espinosa. Revillame decided that instead of waiting for a suspension order from the MTRCB, the network willingly decided to stop the airing of the show.

Revillame lashed back at ABS-CBN channel two which he accused of destroying his career.

Mr. Revillame, don’t blame anyone but yourself. You heaped it upon yourself, all the things that happened in your life.

You should have exercised your sound discretion as an adult. When you saw that kid, Jan jan crying, you should have stopped it and rescued the child from further humiliation. You did’nt.

This very controversial episode ran for several days in thousands of sites in the Internet, causing an uproar online.