Photo via Facebook user Raymond C. Ordoñez
“The eyes of the world are on me, but I sincerely hope they understand the real meaning of the story behind the image, because poverty has only losers,” writes photographer Gregory John Smith, whose photo of an indigent boy in Brazil, stolen by a graduate of the University of the Philippines and entered into a photography competition sponsored by the Chilean Embassy, is now in the center of a social media scandal.
The story of Mark Joseph Tajo Solis, which was first published at a news website, made the usual rounds across different social networks until the article somehow found a way to the feed of Brazilian photographer Smith. “WOW! There is really no limit to people’s abuse of others in this world. This is one of my photographs that just won first prize in a contest that I never entered,” Smith wrote in his Facebook page.
The news site has taken down the story since Sunday afternoon (see the screen grab below).
Threads were abuzz with information regarding Solis, who purportedly is a teaching associate and research assistant at Kyushu University in Fukuoka. His university profile says he was a political science major at University of the Philippines before receiving fellowships and research grants in a couple of Asian countries. He was a social media desk cadet for ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corp in 2010, and a staff of Senator Pia Cayetano for a couple of months this year. The profile describes Solis as a “prolific academic writer.” Cayetano confirmed that Solis was indeed part of her staff for three months but did not pursue is employment at the office.
Solis has apologized through news website Rappler. “I’m in deep remorse. Right now, I already contacted the organizers and I’m about to contact the owner to personally convey to him my deepest and personal apology,” he said. We’ll want a screen grab of that, too.
Smith has posted another photo that was entered by Solis to the United Nations International Year of Water Cooperation contest in India. MM
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