Dahil sa pagkawala ng babaeng si Jovelyn Galleno na nagtatrabaho sa isang outlet sa loob ng isang sikat na mall sa Puerto Princesa City, Palawan, ay muli nanamang binuhay ng mga netizens ang urband legend tungkol sa taong ahas na talaga namang kontrobersyal na pinag-usapan noong 90s.
Alice Dixson / Photo credit to the owner
Hanggang sa ngayon ay hindi pa rin nakikita o nahahanap si Jovelyn.
Jovelyn Galleno / Photo credit to the owner
Dahil dito ay nabuhay at muling naungkat ang urban legend tungkol sa taong ahas.
Ayon sa kwento, sa ilalim ng mall o basement nakatira ang “taong ahas” na nambibiktima umano ng magagandang dalaga.
Photo credit to the owner
Samantala, sa Youtube video ni Ayala Corporation Chairman Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala, isinalang si JG Summit CEO Lance Gokongwei, at sa kanilang talakayan tungkol sa ekonomiya, nauwi ang kanilang pag-uusap sa hindi mawala-wala at kontrobersiyal na urban legend tungkol sa “taong ahas” na diumano ay nasa loob ng Robinsons Galleria.
Ayon kay Lance: "That's a definite false."
Pag-aari ng mga Gokongwei ang Robinsons mall chain.
"If there was a snake, my sister Robina would've caught it and converted it into a handbag that she sold in Robinsons,” pabirong hirit ni Gokongwei.
Robina Gokongwei-Pe / Photo credit to the owner
Ang tinutukoy niyang Robina ay si Gokongwei-Pe, president and CEO ng Robinsons Retail Holdings Inc.
Sinasabing kakambal daw ni Robina ang taong ahas. Ito raw ang naging dahilan kung bakit naging maginhawa ang kanilang buhay.
Noong May 24, 1991 sa isang interview kay Robina ng programang “The Probe Team’, meron umanong 52 versions ang kuwento tungkol sa taong ahas.
Robina Gokongwei-Pe / Photo credit to the owner
Aniya, “I think it's very, very stupid. Everybody asks me that question, 'Who started the rumor?' Most probably it was spread by a competitor with a very, very sick mind.”
Nagbigay rin siya ng challenge noon sa mga makapagpapatunay na may taong ahas nga sa kanilang mall.
Photo credit to the owner
“I'm inviting everybody to go there. And, naku, if anybody can find that creature, I swear I'm going to give the entire Galleria to him!”
Samantala, mas lalong naging mainit ang isyu tungkol sa taong ahas nang kumalat ang balitang naging biktima ang aktres na si Alice Dixson.
Ngunit ito ay pinabulaanan na ni Alice sa kanyang Youtube channel noong July 25, 2020.
Alice Dixson / Photo credit to the owner
Alice Dixson / Photo credit to the owner
Paliwanag niya, hindi niya intensiyong buhayin ang tsismis na 30 years mahigit nang pinag-uusapan.
Nais lang umano niyang linawin ang mga naganap sa Robinsons Galleria noong dalaga pa siya.
Kwento niya, "What I remember on that particular day was, I went to Robinsons Galleria mall and to the department store para mag-browse ng clothing.”
Wala namn daw espesyal sa araw na yun at hindi rin niya matandaan kung bakit nasa nasabing mall siya noon.
Alice Dixson / Photo credit to the owner
Alice Dixson / Photo credit to the owner
“In fact it was like any ordinary day. At pagkatapos kong mamili ng mga damit na gusto ko, in-assist ako ng isang saleslady, and she directed me to the dressing room.”
“Kasi sa totoo lang, nabibilang sa [mga daliri sa] isang kamay yung ilang beses akong nakarating sa mall noong time na yun.
“Then somebody close to me, and even a couple of fans, said or reminded me that the incident actually took place when I was there on a movie shoot.
“I remember it actually being night and production told me I needed to change my outfit or go into my costume.”
Pinapunta umano siya sa bathroom sa labas ng department store na nasa fourth floor para magpalit ng damit.
May mga nag-uusyoso pa aniya sa labas.
Kuwento niya, “And for some reason, once I was inside the bathroom, I said ‘tuklaw-tuklaw!’
“I was just being funny, I was trying to get a laugh sa mga kasamahan ko. I was just being young and silly."
Alice Dixson / Photo credit to the owner
Alice Dixson / Photo credit to the owner
Makalipas ang ilang araw, dito na lumabas ang balitang nabiktima si Alice ng taong ahas sa loob ng mall.
“Lumabas pa ito sa headlines ng tabloids and news.
"And one day, one morning after, my secretary told me na tumawag ang Robinson's representative, gusto akong kausapin.
Alice Dixson / Photo credit to the owner
Alice Dixson / Photo credit to the owner
“But, I believe, siguro they wanted to ask me if I had made these comments and these accusations.”
Hindi naman pinansin ng aktres ang issue. Dahil dito ay mas lalong lumaki at naging laganap ang tungkol sa taong ahas.
“In fact, even months after, pag nakakausap ko yung mga Chinese-Filipino friends ko, they were saying na totoo nga na may offspring na snake—na half-snake ang Gokongwei.
“Of course, this was just usap-usapan lang, right? Wala namang pruweba to this.”
Doon na aniya lalong kumalat ang tsismis.
Ayon pa sa aktres, may isa pang pinag-ugatan ng paglaganap ng tsismis na nakagat siya ng taong ahas sa mall.
“Meron kasing mass communication curriculum ang isang school that it had a particular project to disseminate information to see how far, how convoluted, and how long information could spread.
"And I believed they used this story. I know because mass communication graduate din ako, and we studied these kinds of case studies.”
Hindi naman niya binanggit kung anong school ang kanyang sinasabi.
At dahil nanatili siyang tahimik sa isyu, lalo aniyang lumakas ang paniniwala ng mga tao na totoo nga ang kuwento.
“Ibig sabihin, perhaps, my silence was a contributing factor sa paglaki ng rumor na ito.
Alice Dixson / Photo credit to the owner
Alice Dixson / Photo credit to the owner
“But in my defense, even before, kahit ngayon, pag may hindi totoong rumor, if there's something false that's circulating, naniniwala akong di ko dapat patulan.
“I don't have to be defensive about it. And that's one of my reasons kaya hindi ako nagkomento noon.
“And I didn't really feel the need to talk about it, or defend myself.”
Bakit nga ba ngayon lang nagkwento at pinabulaan ni Alice ang kwento tungkol sa taong ahas?
Aniya, kung tutuusin ay nakalimutan na niya ito, muli lamang niya itong naalala dahil may kasunduan pala sila ng isang kaibigan.
“Meron kaming usapan that after a certain point, or pagdating ng certain time, that I would actually reveal my story.
“Hindi naman revelation kundi to tell my story. So this is the time that I want to set things straight.
“I know a lot of you are going to be saying, ‘Ano ba iyan, denial na naman!’
Photo credit to the owner
Alice Dixson / Photo credit to the owner
“You deny something that is true, but I'm not denying anything because what I'm saying is that nothing really happened.
“Nothing really happened in the way that the urban legend or the myth dictates.”
Sinagot rin ng aktres ang balitang binayaran umano siya para manahimik.
“Hindi naman ako nahulog sa trapdoor.
"Hindi naman ako tumakbo sa corridor palabas, you know, papuntang hotel.
“Hindi din naman ako nabayaran ng PHP850 million at hindi rin nangyari yung na-cut ang pagsasalita ko sa isang TV show when I was trying to explain myself.”
Hindi raw totoong ang mga iyon.
Alice Dixson / Photo credit to the owner
“Pero kaya ba maraming naniniwala because it's just a well-hidden secret?
"Kung totoo nga, bakit walang nag-i-step forward, like, bakit walang security guard.
"There's no maid, there's no close friend, there's nobody who actually witnessed this side from this urban legend?
“There's nobody to corroborate this myth. Right? Wala...”
Binanggit din ni Alice ang naging tsismis ilang taon na ang nakalilipas na namatay na ang taong ahas sa mall.
“Lumabas pa nga ito sa YouTube and sa balita. Pero hindi natin ma-disprove iyan or prove.
“However, kinontak ako ng Robinsons Galleria shortly after to participate in their digital ad campaign.”
Alice Dixson / Photo credit to the owner
“Well, kayo na lang po ang bahalang mag-decide kung ano ang paniniwalaan ninyo. If it is or it is not.
“Basta sinabi ko na sa inyo yung truth ko, I told you what happened and, hopefully, this is the first and last time I'm gonna explain myself or say anything about it.”
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Source: PEP
