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MANILA, Philippines - You would think that a Filipino cultural icon and an international star like Lea Salonga would be spared from the shady deals that, unfortunately, do happen from time to time in the local entertainment industry. Think again.

The Tony-award winning musical theater artist was paid a bounced check in the amount of P200,000 by the producer of “Echoes of Dreams” benefit concert at the Araneta Coliseum on Nov. 30, 2009.

As of this writing—2 months after the concert—Salonga remains unpaid and the said producer has not communicated with Salonga or her representatives.

This incident hardly made a ripple in the entertainment industry and the news only reached people in showbiz through a Facebook status that Salonga herself posted online.

That FB status, posted on December 22, 2009, reads: “Just so you know, I am not now nor have I ever been a close friend of Jerome Vinarao (Echoes of Dreams producer). All claims that he's close to me are false. As in ALL!!!”

Then Salonga reveals in the discussion that follows that she was paid a bounced check by Vinarao and also mentions that her adopted sister, Sheilla Habab, was also a “victim.”

This writer caught up with Vinarao at his Center for Arts Foundation along Timog Avenue in Quezon City. Vinarao agreed to explain his side.

Vinarao denied ever claiming that he’s a close friend of Salonga.

"Once and for all, I would like to clear my side that I have not been claiming I am a close friend of Lea. What I know is that I was a good fan of hers," he said in an exclusive interview.

Vinarao also admitted that the check he issued Salonga did bounce. However, he explained that it bounced simply because the account from which the check was drawn ran out of funds.

He admitted that he was short of funds after the November 30 show because the “Echoes of Dreams” concert was a flop.

He admitted he issued a post-dated check to Salonga but pointed out that he warned Salonga’s camp in advance that the check would bounce due to insufficient funds.

"The date of the check was December 5, 2009. I told them not to deposit it until I tell them so," he added.

Vinarao revealed that the show didn't make money.

"I had to pay P280,000 as tax to Araneta Coliseum. The net proceeds was only P9,450. It was a flop. I only had 2 groups which gave me donations so I was able to pay the tax," explained Vinarao.

According to Vinarao, the P200,000 cash that was originally allotted for Salonga was diverted to pay various suppliers.

He said he handed P200,000 in cash to Habab for payments to these suppliers.

"I had to pay some of the suppliers. I paid Lea's band P16,000. It's a matter of priority, mas uunahin ko ang mga supplier at ang mga bata kaysa kay Lea (I paid the suppliers and child performers first before Lea)," he said.

Vinarao also said Judy Araneta Roxas gave her P50,000 as donation last Jan. 10, 2010 but he did not specify where the money went.

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• Pinoy Showbiz