Lapu-Lapu City mayor demands public apology from rapper Ez Mil

Mayor Junard "Ahong" Chan of Lapu-Lapu City demanded apology from rapper Ez Mil for his "misrepresentation" of the national hero in a song.

In a Facebook post on Monday, Mayor Chan stated that he did not like how Lapulapu was described to be beheaded in Mactan in Ez Mil's "Panalo."

"As a city father, I was hurt by the ridicule that was being made. If Ez Mil did not recognize Datu Lapulapu as a hero, he would not have composed a song that would create anger among every Oponganon," he wrote in Cebuano.

According to the mayor, using the phrase "pinugutan si Lapu sa Mactan" is erroneous and wants the rapper to publicly apologize and change the lyrics that he wrote.

"We recommend to the City Council to pass a resolution condemning the lyrics mentioning Datu Lapulapu," he said.

Despite the frustration for his people, Mayor Chan said that they are open to hearing the rapper's side.

In an interview with Hbom Segovia, the rapper explained why he decided to include the line.

"In terms of the rhyming pattern, I always go to this dilemma or doubt in my head in terms of when I’m closing out a song," he said. "Am I gonna close it out with absolute truth or am I gonna make people talk about it? That's like me weighing the options."

He then apologized, but he said that his goal of increasing people's interest was achieved.

"I'm sorry to anybody who was offended with the fact that me putting inaccurate sources in our history as Filipinos. That's why the song is what it is right now," he said.

"The way I wrote that got people talking. I got people agreeing to it. I got people disagreeing. I got people in the in-betweens. I had to check that all out. The way it is now, people are talking about it. I got to be smart about it," he added.

Ez Mil took the internet by storm when he released the song featuring lines in English, Filipino, Ilocano and music used in the Cariñosa folk dance.

—Franchesca Viernes/MGP, GMA News