Nas Academy wants to set the record straight
Nas Academy breaks its silence and issues a lengthy statement regarding claims that its Whang-od Academy is a scam, exploits Philippine culture, and that Whang-od has no knowledge of the project. Through a Facebook post released today, Aug. 5, 2021, the online learning platform shared a video showing the 104-year-old mambabatok with her relatives putting her thumbprint on documents, a sign that she is giving her approval to the project.
"As a company, we have been champions of the Philippines from Day 1, so this makes us very sad to hear. Let us set the record straight," it posted.
"We approached Whang-od because, just like you, we love her. We love her traditions, and are inspired by her. We wanted to share her culture for future generations to appreciate and respect the ancient Kalinga tradition of mambabatok," it continued. "So we pitched her family the idea of creating Whang-Od Academy. Her and her family present both loved this idea, and have worked WITH US to build it, with Whang-od teaching herself. As a matter of fact, Whang-Od’s trusted niece, Estella Palangdao, was present and translated the content of the contract prior to Whang-od affixing her thumbprint, signifying her full consent to the project. This is the clearest evidence that it is not a scam and achieved the consent of her and her immediate family."
Only providing marketing and tech tools in the project, the learning platform also clarifies that everyone that is part of the project is compensated, with most of the Whang-Od Academy sales going directly to the Dangal Hiraya awardee and her family. The team behind Nas Academy said that the reason why they took down the course yesterday, Aug. 4, 2021, is for them to "resolve any issues that have arisen from these falsehoods."
"When we saw the falsehoods circulating online, we were sad," it said. "The truth is oftentimes not as simple as a 'tweet.' And online falsehoods can be dangerous."
"Forty percent of Nas Academy is made up of Filipinos. So, for us, this is personal. We care deeply about the Philippines and respect the many cultures and traditions that exist across the country. And we have all come together to make the world a better place. Thank you for supporting our mission!," it ended.
The issue of Whang-od Academy being a scam started when Grace Palicas, one of Whang-od's grandnieces, shared on social media that her "grandmother did not sign any contract with Nas Daily to do any academy."
Nas Academy is a learning platform created by social media personality Nuseir Yassin, best known as Nas Daily. Currently the learning platform features Filipino personalities such as Miss Universe 2018 Catriona Gray, fashion designer Michael Cinco, food vlogger Erwan Heussaff, and broadcast journalist Jessica Soho leading various courses.