“Maraming cases dito sa’tin na those who tested positive, hindi alam ang gagawin dahil sa takot and stigma attached to it,” says Eric. “Dahil dito, the disease gets worse and becomes full blown AIDS. Being HIV Positive is not a death sentence as there has been a lot of progress in treating it.”
The lead character, Carlo, is played by Martin Escudero, who’s married to Helga Krapf. His mom is Bing Loyzaga and his best friend is Felix Roco. The other women linked to him who might have given him the virus are Rufa Mae Quinto, Bianca Manalo and Malak So Shdifat. They were present at the presscon and we asked them how they’ll react and what they’ll do if they tested HIV Positive.
Direk Eric: “Any person would go through a process. Why me? May depression stage. In my case, I‘d like to learn more about the disease and what I can do about it.”
Martin: “Siempre, una, matatakot ka. But it’s important to get the guidance and support of your family kasi sila unang tutulong sa’yo, then seek the help of experts and have faith in God.”
Felix: “I’ll immediately try to change my lifestyle.’
Helga: “Initial reaction will be fear. Until when will I live? How much longer will I be with my family?”
Bianca: “Bubuo ako agad ng support group kasi kung ako lang, di ko kakayaning mag-isa. I will need the help of others.”
Malak: “I’ll go to counselling groups and seek the help of experts.”
Rufa Mae: “First, I’ll pray and have continuous medication. I’ll also continue to think positive while I’m HIV positive, para tuloy-tuloy lang ang positivity.”
Bing: “After the initial reaction of fear, I’ll immediately contact the right people and deal with it. Just be positive kasi now, marami ng ways to prolong your life.”
“Positive” starts airing on Thursday, October 17, at 9 PM, after “For Love or Money”. Meantime, because of the PBA Finals, the airing of “The Gift” starring Ogie Alcasid is postponed for next year. The schedule of TV5 for primetime starting Monday will be as follows: Monday to Friday, 7 PM – Aga Muhlach’s game show “Let’s Ask Pilipinas”. 7:30 PM – Sharon Cuneta’s barangay serye “Madame Chairman”. Monday and Tuesday – they’ll show Tagalized Hollywood films at 8 PM. Wednesday and Friday, they’ll show the PBA Finals at 8 PM. Thursday, they have “For Love or Money” at 8 PM and “Positive” at 9 PM.
