Boyet Fajardo who?

By now you would have known about this power tripping incident by a certain Boyet Fajardo at the Duty Free Fiesta Mall at Parañaque City. Well, in case you haven't, here's a description of the incident based on a narrative by Concerned Filipino Citizen:

Last March 13, 2009, Filipino Fashion Designer Angelino Boyet Fajardo created a scene, to the shock and horror of shoppers and employees of Duty Free Philippines alike, when a cashier politely asked for his ID after presenting his unsigned credit card. This is a standard operating procedure applicable to all stores to verify ownership of the credit card and prevent fraud.

Suddenly, the designer reportedly got furious and, at the top of his voice, started berating the cashiers and managers of Duty Free Philippines. He might have thought a celebrated person like he is, with all his accolades and fame, has gone unrecognized by the cashier. A new well-trained casual worker who is carefully doing his job. The designer further shocked bystanders by cursing the people there with words such as leche and p...ina, while angrily expressing surprise why the people there did not recognize him.

Store managers and officers were sought to appease the matter, explaining to him that it is all included as a standard operating procedure in credit card payment for the safety, not only for the company but also his own. Ignoring all this, he pulled out his phone and threatened to call on high positioned government officials whom he allegedly knew, like doing a power-play to make these people realize how important he is. He went on saying "Mga leche kayo! Hindi niyo ako kilala? Ako si Boyet Fajardo! At itong p...ina na babaeng ito (pointing to a lady officer) at ang baklang ito (pointing to the cashier) ay walang kwentang mga tao! I want them fired!!!"

His yelling and berating went on and on. He cannot calm down and as he appeared to have bloodshot eyes, like that of a drunk person and or under an influence. He threw his passport on the cashier's face and later intentionally stepped on the cashier's foot to say "Ay sorry, di ko sinasadya!" He goes on to say, that only if the cashier kneel down before him and/or allow him to freely slap the cashier's face, may he get satisfied.

The ill-fated cashier, with all the onlookers watching, stand down and just simply gave in to probably he thought would end the matter. Crying in shame he slowly knelt down and apologize (for actually doing his job) before this self proclaimed GOD, perhaps for fear of loosing his job. No slapping was made to the cashier's face but the incident landed a harsher and reverberating sound to the faces of the lesser people of this society.

Fortunately, his inhumane acts were caught on CCTV in which a portion was featured in YouTube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojv_kbsEQHQ&feature=channel_page

With such disrespect, discrimination and humiliation towards a good worker, a less fortunate person and a fellow Filipino...

1. We are calling all citizens to stop patronizing Boyet Fajardo's RTW labels such as Substance in SM department stores, Boyet Fajardo and Initials in Landmark and Robinson's department stores.
2. We are calling on all malls to pull out or stop distributing his products in your outlets.
4. We are calling on the Commission on Human Rights, Department of Labor and Employment and all human rights and labor activists to take appropriate legal actions on this matter.
5. We are calling all foreign embassies to deny him of entry to your respective countries.
6. We are calling on the Fashion Designers Association of the Philippines to dishonor him of his membership and profession.

...To give him a lesson and to help us stop him from victimizing the underprivileged over and over and over again.

In a recent news article by ABS-CBN, the said display of arrogance was called a "creative outburst" by Ricky Rivera, the designer's spokesperson, and that the footage from the surveillance camera might be misinterpreted by viewers. Let's see... a salesclerk kneeling in front of Boyet Fajardo and crying, and Mr. Fajardo pointing a finger at the cashier... and he was just explaining something to them? Give me a break. Even without audio, you can plainly see just what is happening there.

Nobody deserves the kind of treatment Boyet Fajardo did to the clerks, who were simply doing their jobs for crying out loud. I feel for the clerks, who must have been so afraid to lose their jobs in these trying times.

While the online petition calls for rather drastic actions, I think a no-patronage of his products should send out the message to him and bring him to a more manageable level. And the clerks deserve a personal apology. With kneeling too, perhaps?

How I loathe power trippers.