On guarding our Cordilleran culture

Let us be vigilant in guarding our culture.
I salute Gracia Palicas, the grandniece of Apo Whang-od, our traditional tattoo artist from Kalinga, for the courage and immediate action on the alleged scam committed by the Nas Daily.
I am an avid fan of Nas Daily, the Facebook account of Arab Israeli Vlogger Nuseir Yassin, but I was disgusted when Palicas posted on social media that the Whang-od Academy under the Nas Academy was a “scam.”
Palicas explained Apo Whang-od was not aware and has not signed any contract for the creation of Whang-od Academy.
The case of Apo Wang-od against Nas Daily is just one of the many “scams” committed by vloggers and bloggers on our Cordilleran culture. Sometimes we are delighted and take pride watching the videos or pictures of our rich cultures on social media but we aren’t knowledgeable whether the content creators or photographers have sought permission from their subject or concerned government agencies.
It was good that Nas Daily had deleted its post on Whang-od Academy, a supposed online course on traditional tattooing.
It is true that we have National Commission on Indigenous Peoples, IP representatives in local councils, and community elders who are mandated to regulate the exploitation of our cultures but they are not enough considering easy access of information through electronic media platforms.
Some netizens said some vloggers and bloggers are making money from their contents regarding our vibrant cultures. As netizens, we must be vigilant against online content creators who don’t undergo the protocols on obtaining contents on Cordilleran cultures but are earning easy profits and other personal interests.
Thus, let us continue guarding our Cordilleran cultures from misrepresentations, exploitations, bullying or other illegal means and intentions. (AUGUSTIN A. DAO-ANIS)