Miggy Matute of OdysseyLive.net has posted the official statement of Rivermaya regarding the recent IPO decision on the ‘Maya trademark on his blog. The official statement will be published tomorrow (October 2) in newspapers. Read the news article about the IPO decision here: (http://pinoyrockcentral.com/2009/09/and-the-name-belongs-to).

Here’s the official statement:

While the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) has issued a Decision in the matter of Lizza Nakpil’s application for trademark registration of “Rivermaya,” there is nothing in the Decision, which resolves or confirms Lizza Nakpil’s claim of ownership.

The Decision, which is far from being final, merely states that our opposition was dismissed “without prejudice,” which means that the Decision itself does not preclude us from asserting our right to establish our ownership of the servicemark “Rivermaya” in the proper forum, such as the right to file a Petition for Cancellation in the event that Lizza Nakpil or any other entity registers “Rivermaya” in their name.

In the Decision, the IPO Director found no necessity to pass upon the merits of the case, as she merely dwelled on pure technicality. Lizza Nakpil is not, and has never been, the creator of Rivermaya. The truth is, the name “Rivermaya” was created, collectively, by Nathan Azarcon, Bamboo Mañalac, Perfecto De Castro, Rico Blanco and Mark Escueta in 1994. Nathan Azarcon and Bamboo Mañalac have confirmed this fact in a Joint Affidavit submitted to the IPO in support of our opposition to Lizza Nakpil’s application.

Since the creation of the name “Rivermaya,” the band members had changed, except for Mark Escueta who had stayed, and who, together with the current members, Mike Elgar, Japs Sergio, and recently, Jayson Fernandez, kept Rivermaya among the top bands in the country today. Through our original music, the past and current members of Rivermaya band have continuously used and successfully promoted the name and mark “RIVERMAYA” in the entertainment scene here and abroad.

Lizza Nakpil, on the other hand, was a mere manager-agent of the individual members of the Rivermaya band, who, in evident bad faith, had applied for the registration of the servicemark “Rivermaya” in July 2008, or three (3) months after an unfortunate incident in April 2008, which led to the loss of our trust in Lizza Nakpil as our manager-agent, the eventual revocation of her authority to represent us, and the filing of a criminal action against her before the Office of the City Prosecutor of Makati.

If there is any justice to be had from our legal system, we are confident that once the merits of the case are considered, Lizza Nakpil’s application shall be denied. Under the Intellectual Property Code, “Rivermaya” is unregistrable since it is a name, which collectively identifies us as a band. “Rivermaya,” has been made well-known by, and is really all about the music created by the artists who became part of the Rivermaya band. Lizza Nakpil is not one of them.

Our lawyers are currently taking the appropriate action on the matter. In the meantime, we shall continue to use the name and mark “Rivermaya,” despite Lizza Nakpil’s acts of harassment and misrepresentation.

Here is Mark Escueta’s post on the Ground mailing list, detailing the release of this official statement:

We need your help. I know this is a great time of need and a time of great loss for so many people and I hope we are all doing what we can to help typhoon victims all over. Rivermaya is also going through a great trial, once again.

Our former agent lisa nakpil has been misleading people into believing that she is the founder and creator of rivermaya, that she ‘owns’ the name rivermaya, and this is simply NOT true. Gusto po niyang patayin ang banda natin. Ang pangalan po ng banda ay nanggaling sa amin nina Nathan, Perf, Rico at Bamboo noong 1994 at hindi kay nakpil. We’re really sorry that all of you have been dragged into this mess that she is creating and we appeal for your support at this time.

Sa ilang sandali malalaman niyo ang official statement ng Rivermaya at magkakaroon ng kalinawan ang mga pangyayari. This IPO issue is only a part of the whole story and it is being used by nakpil to distract everyone from the whole truth. We have tried our best to keep silent about the whole thing and most of you don’t even know why we fired her in the first place. I assure you there is much more to this than what has come out in the papers and online.

She has been harassing producers asking them to cancel performances, threatening them with legal action which has no basis. Pinasara po niya ang official website natin, and facebook pages natin at ang youtube site natin. I’m sure she’s trying to shut down The Ground as we speak.

20 years na po akong musikero.
15 years na drummer ng Rivermaya. Halos kalahati ng buhay ko.
I am a Christian and I will not lie to you about these important matters.
I would not lie to you about anything.
If it were true that nakpil created and founded rivermaya then I would not fight for it at all and give it to her respectfully. But this is simply not true and I will fight for truth and justice with all willing people behind me. Suportado din po tayo nina Bamboo at Nathan. Wag tayong susuko.

Di po ba nakakapagtaka na sinasabi niyang siya ang gumawa ng rivermaya pero nung 2008 lang siya nag-file ng application sa IPO after namin siyang tanggalin sa paggiging agent namin? Kung totoo po yon eh di sana nung 1994 palang ginawa na niya yan. Inaangkin po niya ang hindi naman sa kanya.

Why did we fire her?
What exactly did she do to us?
Why is she registering the name rivermaya under her own name?
You will learn more about everything very very soon.

In behalf of my bandmates, Mike Elgar, Jayson Fernandez & Japs Sergio, our families and our crew, I would like to personally ask for your help. Please stay tuned for more updates.

Tayo po ang rivermaya. Maraming salamat po.

God help us all.

markmaya

Sources:
Official Statement – http://www.odysseylive.net/miggy/blog/1502/

Blogger’s Commentary:
While I was creating this post, Lizza Nakpil sent me the official documents regarding the IPO’s decision. I’ll post the documents in another blog post. And I’ll post my reactions from there.