Kennedy to Sotto: 'This is a clear case of plagiarism'

From Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines - Long is the saga of Sottogate, yet allegations against Senator Tito Sotto continue.

Now 4 US copyright holders have spoken out, including the president of the Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights: RFK’s daughter, Kerry Kennedy.

All this began again the other day, when Sarah Pope, Janice Formichella, and Peter Engelman issued a joint statement alleging that Sotto had “infringed on our intellectual property rights and plagiarized.”

Their protest was swiftly dismissed by Sotto and his staff, who, according to GMA News, “questioned its authenticity, pointing out that it did not even have an official letterhead.”

This, after Sotto’s chief of staff, Hector Villacorta, reportedly said they would address the issue only after the aggrieved parties complained.

Complain they have, in no uncertain terms. Yet when Formichella wrote about the issue in Ms. Magazine, Sotto churlishly said: “She is pathetic. She is just riding on to get famous.”

When Engelman wrote a statement, he was ignored completely. And when Sotto was asked about his alleged plagiarism of Kennedy’s speech, our Senate Majority Leader replied: “The people who think this is plagiarism should think again. I did not copy it, I translated it. Do they know the spelling of ‘copy’ and ‘translate’? They have low IQ!”

And so I present to Messrs Sotto and Villacorta this fourth complaint. On official letterhead. From someone who knows the spelling of copy and translate, and undeniably needs not ride on to get famous. Such is Ms Kennedy’s track record in continuing her father’s legacy.