Persona Non-Grata

     Pura Luka Vega, a drag queen whose real name is Amadeus Fernando Pagente, has been declared persona Non-Grata in several cities and provinces in Luzon,Visayas and Mindanao, for singing the "Our Father" in one of her performances which is considered blasphemous by many in this devoutly Catholic country. 

Pura Luka Vega in her blasphemous getup

     Many of the proponents of the non-grata label have considered her performance as purely irreverent with no regard to the sentiments of a predominantly Catholic population. While he claims his performance meant no disrespect to the sacredness of the prayer, saying it was art, the Catholics definitely cannot accept whatever explanation he says now. What have I done wrong, he asked.

     I don't have a strong position for or against her performance. I strongly believe he should have taken some prudence into her performance knowing that such backlash would have been expected. I am not sure though if this is real or his way to become popular as she is now treading the headlines. In the Philippines, the media hype would die down eventually, just like many other issues in the past, strengthening my belief it's her ploy to become popular.