MANILA, Philippines — TV host Raymond Gutierrez is greeted by questions and controversy days after he celebrated his 36th birthday on January 21.
Happy Birthday and congratulations to Mond Gutierrez and friends for singlehandedly defying COVID restrictions and now...
Posted by De La Salle University-Manila Secret Files on Saturday, January 23, 2021
Instead of cheers, netizens jeered the host and his friends for the controversial photos circulating the Internet, allegedly taken during his birthday celebration in a restaurant in Taguig.
In the Twitter post of @GaysOverCovidPH on January 23, Raymond was seen being surrounded by friends while waiting to blow a cake. It was superimposed with the words 'Happy birthday, @mond. Note: Everyone was PCR Tested!'."
The account that posted the photo wrote as caption, "Think about the people, Mond."
"Happy Birthday and congratulations to Mond Gutierrez and friends for singlehandedly defying COVID restrictions and now shutting down La Picara Manila - which will most definitely result in people losing their jobs. Guess you can get away with anything when you’re rich and famous! Anyway, how was the party?" De La Salle University-Manila Secret Files said in a Facebook post, which named Sarah Lahbati, Yassi Pressman, Issa Pressman and Kobe Paras as among the celebrities who were allegedly at the party.
Another photo showed the restaurant with the notice of closure from the Taguig City government.
On the city's social media pages, Mayor Lino Cayetano issued a statement regarding the alleged incident.
"We want to assure all our citizens, visitors and stakeholders that Taguig City, including BGC, is safe and open for business. We will continue our efforts to ensure that establishments and their clients act responsibly during this time of pandemic.
"Establishments in Taguig that endanger the health and safety of their customers and employees will be engaged immediately. Repeated violators will be closed down.
"We will not allow a few irresponsible establishments to compromise our efforts in making Taguig a model community for living in the new normal. We will strive to implement health and safety protocols so that businesses in Taguig can thrive," the statement read.
He stressed that despite being an economic and commercial hub catering to all of Metro Manila, there are "5 active cases per 100,000 population in Taguig compared to 24 active cases per 100,000 population in NCR."
He enjoined businesses to "operate safely and responsibly."
Raymond's last Instagram (@mond) post was his hosting stint with football star David Beckham while his twin, Richard Gutierrez (@richardgutz), showed a photo of them with their own birthday cakes.
No statements were released yet by Raymond or by his mother, talent manager Annabelle Rama.