Team DailyPedia
Brian Poe-Llamanzares, son of presidential aspirant Sen. Grace Poe, inadvertently thrust himself into controversy when he posted a picture of himself on Instagram sporting what appears to be a pair of Nike Mag10 Back to the Future II Marty McFly sneakers.
News agency Rappler quickly ran a story early February, reporting that a pair—produced by Nike at a limited run—would set a buyer back by around PhP900,000. Llamanzares later claimed that the sneakers were a fake pair, which he bought online at around PhP4,000 and with his own money. His mother Sen. Poe and grandmother, actress Susan Roces, also spoke out to defend the young man from criticism.
Llamanzares, however, found unlikely allies in sneakerheads (shoe collectors and experts). Antonio B. Aguirre, Jr., chief executive officer (CEO) of Sole Slam Manila, tweeted “LOL THE SHOES ARE FAKE. What he’s wearing is worth about $100 USD only.”
Apparently, stocks of both fakes and officially licensed replicas abound online. For $99, one can avail of a replica pair. Unlike the fake pairs which still sport the Nike swoosh, this replica pair does not have the signature swoosh mark, but is officially licensed by Universal Studios.
Of course, regardless of whether they’re fake, legit, or official replicas, because of the unrestricted nature of social media, netizens just had to have their say on the matter.
“Wow ano masasabi mo? (Wow, what can you say?)” asked Facebook user Divine Dayao. “Senadora pa lang si mama paano na pag Presidente na? (Mom’s just a senator. What more if she becomes president?)”
While the senator defended her son’s rights as a private citizen, a few netizens argued that her running for president opens her and her family’s lives up to public scrutiny and criticism.
“The point here kaya nagkakaroon ng gulo (why there is controversy) is he shouldn’t have posted such things like this knowing that his mom is running for president of the Republic of the Philippines,” explained Lori Jane Ocampo. “And yes, it is their right to post pictures pero sana (but I wish there were some) consideration. Sana (I wish) he thinks half a million times din na ang Pilipinas (that the Philippines) has its own countrymen na makikitid utak. (who’re narrow-minded.) Even though he could afford this limited edition of Nike, sana sinarili nalang nya. (he should’ve kept it to himself.) (Ang nasa utak kasi ng lahat is corrupt so ayon papasok sa utak nila kung san nanggaling yung pambili nung sapatos kahit isa ang Poe sa mga pinakamayaman sa Pilipinas.) (People are always thinking about corruption, so they will automatically question where the money to buy those shoes came from, even if the Poes are one of the wealthier families in the Philippines).”
Quite a number, however, came to the young man’s defense. “But damn, they’re just shoes, and fake ones, at that,” exclaimed Marc Doroja. “If he was dealing with agriculture or properties that are of questionable nature, I’d understand; but to blow a personal purchase, bought with money he’s made from his work, out of proportion? Wow, I should be happy none of my relatives are running for office, lest my pending purchase of a Perfect Grade Unicorn Gundam become viral!”
Some netizens believed the wrong people were being criticized. “yun mga taga makati nga mansion pinopost e… (Meanwhile, the ones in Makati post about their mansions),” said JP Ong. “eto kahit sino naman kaya bumili neto…pero mansion hindi lahat kaya bumili…at mga ferrari pwe! (Anyone can buy a pair of shoes, but not everyone has the money to buy mansions and Ferraris.)”
Kip Oebanda thought in a similar vein though he seems to have another politician in mind. “The people freaking out about one pair of shoes owned by Poe’s son don’t seem to mind the 3,000 pairs owned by Bongbong’s mom,” he said in reference to VP hopeful Bongbong Marcos’s mom Imelda Marcos who was notorious for her very extensive shoe collection.
