Jolina Magdangal's competence as 'Pinoy Idol' judge still questioned

Singer-actress Jolina Magdangal is currently busy promoting her new movie “I.T.A.L.Y.” (I Trust and Love You) from GMA Films, but it seems the issue regarding her competence as one of the judges of the recently-concluded “Pinoy Idol,” the Philippine counterpart of the highly-successful “American Idol,” is far from over.

The singer had made comments with regards to the performances of certain contestants that didn’t sit well with the concerned “Pinoy Idol” wannabes. These people made disparaging remarks against Jolina which found their way into the Internet.

When we told Jolina about this in our interview, she defended herself from the unfounded accusations.

“Maybe they are not used to seeing me or hearing me speaking on that tone,” she began. “Hindi lang siguro sila sanay na minsan nakakapag-comment ako ng ganong ka-prangka. They probably still see me as the sweet singer-actress they see on TV and in the movies. But I can’t be sweet forever. I’ve got to show them I have something between my ears. Those comments were meant to make the contestants improve their performance, but not to discredit them.”

She added that the reason why she was tapped as one of the judges of “Pinoy Idol” is because the producers believed in her capacity to do so. They also believe she could contribute something to the show. “It’s not easy to assess the performance of the aspirants. But we’ve got to be firm and be frank if need be to give them an honest assessment,” said Jolina.

To lighten up things a bit, we asked Jolina the oft-repeated question—when is she and boyfriend Bebong Muñoz finally settling down? Have their marriage plans been cancelled already? Or have they discussed it already in length?

The showbiz world awaits their wedding. Maybe Jolina’s friends Judy Ann Santos and Ryan Agoncillo would tie the knot sooner than her.

“We can get married anytime. Bebong and I have talked about it. We won’t be rushed into marriage. We don’t want to be pushed into marriage just because the people are saying we ought to get married,” Jolina answered. “We actually nearly got married before the elections last year but we realized we can’t just plunge into marriage with very minimal preparations.”

Jolina knows that one of these days, Bebong would offer a marriage proposal to her if and when the right time comes.

For now, she’s just enjoying herself with her career, especially since her latest movie “I.T.A.L.Y” is being shown in theaters. She’s also busy promoting her latest album titled “Destiny” under GMA Records.

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Ogie Alcasid wouldn’t want to say anything with regards to the petition for annulment he filed last month. He also wouldn’t want to say anything with regards to his ex-wife Michelle Van Eimeren and his current girlfriend Regine Velasquez.

The singer was advised by his legal counsel not to say anything that might affect or jeopardize the speedy resolution of the petition which he filed in court. Anything that he says about the annulment, or pertaining to Michelle and Regine might serve as a drawback for the fast resolution of the petition.

Ogie made “lambing” to his press friends not to ask him about the annulment so he won’t be forced to make a comment. At times, the singer can’t control himself and makes the mistake of saying something that is not supposed to be said. Once he has the go signal to talk, he promised to tell all.

He also added that the annulment case will not, in any way, affect the working relationship he and Regine have in doing the show “Celebrity Duets” for GMA 7. This is just work and he had long accepted this job even before he decided to file the petition for annulment.

Ogie is anxious to start work on the long-delayed film project that he and Regine are supposed to do for Viva Films, which was supposed to have been shot last year. But he’s positive that Viva is just waiting for the right time for it.

He’s also preparing for his anniversary concert which is happening at the Araneta Coliseum on Saturday, September 27 where he will have plenty of guest performers.