72nd FAMAS director Vince Tanada insisted that he had no choice but to replace veteran actress Eva Darren at the last minute of the event.
In his explanation, Tanada, who’s known for his movie ‘Katips,’ stood by his story that they couldn’t find Eva during the time she was supposed to get on the stage.
He also said that coordinating and communicating with Eva was not his responsibility.
“Eva Darren was on my script. I wrote the script and I can say that she was there. Before the segment, our staff was looking for her. Hindi siya makita. Considering that we are running a live show and we are streamed live, last minute we had to look for a replacement,” said Tanada.
“Kaya nga ‘yung kumanta before the segment na lang ang kinuha namin. It was a setback that me as a director should remedy at that point. The PRO did not inform us of her presence. Anything can happen in a live show and this is one of those moments. I was just running a show. Coordinatioon with stars was not one of my responsibilites,” he added.
However, veteran actress Divina Valencia said that it would be very hard to believe the alibi published by FAMAS organizers as they saw Eva sitting near the stage of the venue.
“Hindi ma-locate eh lahat ng mga artistang dumating, may upuang nakapangalan ng bawat nakaupo?” she said.