Ogie Diaz was being linked to Liza Soberano’s “utang na loob” statement
Talent manager-vlogger Ogie Diaz has broken his silence after netizens connected him to actress Liza Soberano’s viral BuzzFeed Australia interview, in which she mentioned the “utang na loob” culture of Filipinos.
Liza sparked a debate online after saying Filipinos should unlearn “utang na loob,” explaining it shouldn’t feel like a permanent debt.
Liza obviously kept her comments general and didn’t mention her former manager, but fans and critics alike assumed she was hinting at Ogie because of some of the issues that surfaced between them.
Ogie Diaz was Liza Soberano’s manager for a decade. With this, some people dragged him into the actress’s viral statement about “utang na loob,” based on an article in GMA Entertainment.
“Kung utang na loob at utang na loob, sabihin na natin ganito, walang dapat tanawin na utang na loob sa akin si Liza,” Ogie said.
While Ogie believes that people should always cherish and remember the kindness shown to them, he agrees with Liza that the burden of gratitude, or utang na loob, should have its limits and not last a lifetime.
“‘Di ba sinabi ni Liza, dapat ginawa mo ‘yun kasi mabuti ‘yung puso mo. Okay naman ‘yun. Wala namang dapat talunan doon,” the talent manager said.
Ogie Diaz reiterated that Liza Soberano owes him no debt of gratitude just because he used to manage her, emphasizing that their success was a mutual effort.
It is because he believed that if Liza doesn’t have the capacity to make herself grow and enrich her name, then there’s nothing he can do as her manager.
Ogie noted that both he and Liza can look back on their time working together with gratitude. Since they still exchange occasional greetings, he emphasized that there is no reason to scrutinize or create conflict surrounding their relationship.
Then, Ogie encouraged people to be kinder and respect each person’s side of the story. “Importante, minsan sa isang panahon, nagkatulungan kami at proud ako na naging successful si Liza na nandoon ako together with Star Magic na humulma sa kanya. Ang importante ay hindi po kami ni Liza magkaaway,” Ogie Diaz said.