GMA Network resorted to a legal battle against TAPE Inc.
GMA Network, known as the Kapuso network, officially filed an estafa complaint against the officers of production company TAPE Inc.
TAPE is a blocktimer in the Kapuso network and its most famous program was the longest-running noontime show Eat Bulaga. In May 2023, TVJ, Tito Sotto, Vic Sotto, and Joey de Leon, the pioneer hosts of the show, decided to resign from TAPE.
Other hosts, known as Dabarkads, also resigned and joined the iconic TV trio when they transferred to TV5 and continued their noontime show. A legal battle took place between TVJ and TAPE. The court sided with the trio and they were allowed to use the Eat Bulaga title.
Amid this issue, rumors surfaced that TAPE had a debt to GMA Network allegedly worth P800,000. In a statement in April 2024, TAPE’s legal counsel Atty. Maggie Abraham Garduque said that the debt was already settled.
On May 22, 2025, GMA released an official statement letting the public know that the company filed an estafa complaint against TAPE Inc. executives.
“GMA Network, Inc. has filed a criminal complaint for estafa with abuse of confidence against officers of Television and Production Exponents, Inc. (TAPE) for the misappropriation of funds totaling P37,941,352.56,” the media company stated.
The statement also mentioned the executives of the production company who were included in the complaint, Romeo Jalosjos, Jr. (former President and CEO), Romeo Jalosjos, Sr. (Chairman of the Board), Seth Frederick “Bullet” Jalosjos (Treasurer), Malou Choa-Fagar (former COO and current President and CEO), Michaela Magtoto (former Senior Vice President for Finance), and Zenaida Buenavista (Finance Consultant).
Based on the statement, GMA was pushed to file the complaint because TAPE allegedly failed to remit advertising revenues collected from clients and these were assigned to GMA contractually under a 2023 Assignment Agreement.
It was also said that GMA already had multiple formal demands, TAPE did not transfer the funds because the money was used for TAPE’s operational expenses which violated the trust arrangement outlined in their agreement.
“GMA Network is pursuing legal action to hold the responsible officers accountable and to recover the misappropriated amount,” the media company stated.
