Socialite and influencer Cat Arambulo earned the ire of netizens after asking her household staff if it was safe for her children to swim in the flood during the onslaught of Super Typhoon Carina.
In a now-deleted video, the socialite claims that it is the first time her children encountered flood then posed the question of would it be safe to use a floatie in the inundated streets as “it’s just water?” She also asked the people in the car if they should try.
Her statement caused outrage on social media at a time commuters were stranded in chest-deep waters all over Metro Manila. Some were seen on a bus roof desperately waiting to be rescued as rainwater rose to dangerous levels. Houses were flooded while some vehicles floated around inundated city streets. A high number of stray animals and leashed pets that were left behind also perished during its wake.
Local netizens condemned Arambulo’s statement, calling her “insensitive,” “out-of-touch,” and “tone deaf.”
“Cat Arambulo, mas tao pang umasta sa iyo ang mga pusa namin,” a netizen commented.
“Kung namigay sya ng ayuda sa mga binaha at sinama nya mga anak nya ..natuwa pa ko sa kanya,” another netizen stated.
Meanwhile, some defended Arambulo saying her statement only represents Filipino resilience.
“For some, it’s fun. You could see them enjoying their swim. They just wanted to get along with the flood, “go with the flow” kumbaga. We Filipinos are known for our resilience and have a positive outlook no matter the situation,” one commented.
Comparisons were also made to the 2019 Academy Award-winning film Parasite and Arambulo. In particular, it was the car scene between the characters of Cho Yeo-jeong and Song Kang-ho in which the former asked someone on the phone “how could anyone hate the rain?” when the latter’s house was getting flooded that night during the torrential downpour.
However, Arambulo is no stranger to controversy as she has set the internet ablaze in 2020 during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic following her outburst directed at “motherf*ckers” who won’t stay home.
This was the period during which medical frontliners and essential workers were forced to walk from their homes to their places of business as no provisions for public transportation were made.
Following the severe backlash over her statement and calls for public apology, Arambulo posted a mea culpa on her Instagram account.
In the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council’s (NDRRMC) Monday tally, the death toll has reached 36 people with six people injured and three still missing. The onslaught has also left 4.5 million individuals or 1.2 million families displaced.
