Celebrated cartoonist Pol Medina Jr. sought help from his followers to report a Facebook page that used his comic book characters without his permission.
Medina on Saturday, October 23 posted the screenshot of a Facebook page called Tambayan Ni Berto Pilipinas where his characters from “Pugad Baboy” were used as its cover photo.
He then called out the page’s handlers for copyright infringement.
“Linawin ko lang: Wala akong ugnayan sa page na ito at lalong wala akong ugnayan sa pamilyang hindi lang pera ang ninakaw, hindi lang valor, achievements at accomplishments ang inangkin -pati copyrighted images e ninakaw at inangkin din! Sapin-sapin talaga ang balat sa mukha!” Medina said.
Medina thanked the people who helped him report the page.
“Salamat sa mga nagpreport at magre-report pa,” he said.
Following the Medina’s call, the Facebook page changed its cover photo.
The graphic on Medina’s screenshot, however, could still be found on the page’s album of cover photos.
There are several images on the Facebook page’s cover photo album that featured Medina’s cartoon characters. None of them was attributed to the Filipino artist.
Based on the page’s profile, it boasts of over one million likes and more than three million followers.
Under Facebook’s page transparency, it was also stated that the page was established in November 2016.
“Ang Facebook na kung saan madiskobre ang inyong TALENT sa pag awit atbp,” its profile read.
There were other details indicated about its ownership and purpose for creation.
“Pugad Baboy” is among the most popular and long-running comic strips in the Philippines.
Medina released it on May 18, 1988 and had since been featured on mainstream publications such as the Philippine Daily Inquirer, the Philippine Star and Rappler.
The comic strip follows different stories and scenes of fictional Filipino community with seemingly obese residents.
