Vlogger sisters Toni and Mari Fowler and 34 others were charged for violating social distancing rules during their online palengke meet-and-greet in Quezon City, authorities said Wednesday.
The crowd at the sisters' stall late Tuesday exceeded the 50 who registered online for a chance to buy salmon belly and chicken. The sisters were fined P5,000 each while the 34 were asked to pay P500 each, city authorities said.
The Fowlers advertised the event in a Facebook post: "The wait is over... sugod tayo mga bessy" with instructions on how to reserve a slot. The two have a combined YouTube following of 6.5 million, 5.5 million for Toni.
Quezon City's Task Force Disiplina told the sisters to stop the event after a netizen reported the mass gathering to the barangay.
According to Toni, fans bought P500 worth of frozen products and took pictures with them. She said they failed to coordinate with local officials prior to the event. Only 34 attendees were fined P500 as most of the attendees already left.
"Gusto lang po namin mag-explain at humingi ng public apology at maging halimbawa para hindi gayahin ng ibang social media artists," Toni told reporters.
Mari promised to shoulder the attendees' fines and medical expenses if they get sick.
"Kung dito po nanggaling, of course magiging responsable po kami kasi kami po ang nagpa-event," she said.
