The Tarlac City Government has denied that it intentionally blocked the statue of the late Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino, Jr. during a campaign rally for Ferdinand Marcos, Jr.
Images of Aquino's statue in Tarlac City Plazuela being blocked by a tent during the campaign rally went viral and drew flak on social media, saying it was disrespectful to Aquino, who hails from Tarlac himself.
But the city government said that it was not its intention to do so.
"The City Government of Tarlac vehementhly denies any intention to disrespect the memory of the late Benigno S. Aquino Jr.," it said on a statement.
"The incident was inadvertent, nothing intentional."
It explained that the tent originally had a considerable distance from the statue, but was likely moved due to the influx of people.
"The supposed tent, as can be gleaned from the attached photo, was originally located at a considerable distance, spacious enough to separate the tent from the monument," it said.
"However, due may be to the influx of people attending the mentioned rally, owing to the fact that the heat of the sun dictates the need for a shelter, the same tent was inadvertently moved towards the monument, which was unintentional," it added.
According to city government, it was "unfortunate" that despite the platforms discussed by the candidates who attended the event, others chose to "spread divisiveness" and highlight the statue incident, which it said was not reflective of the whole rally.
Tarlac City Mayor Cristy Angeles, as well as Tarlac Governor Susan Yap, recently threw their support for Marcos Jr. and running-mate Sara Duterte for the upcoming elections.
