'Mahilig mag-Facebook' to 'advocate:' Meet the guy who's been featured on TV three times in his life
Meet Lester Babiera, the netizen who's been featured on the news three times in the span of 11 years.
In 2011, Lester became a meme after he was tagged as the "mahilig mag-Facebook" student during an ABS-CBN segment. But a decade after that, he never thought he would also become a 'saksi' and a 'bicycle advocate'.
You might think that someone needs to live a particularly colorful life or have tons of connections to be featured on television, but for Lester, it was mostly by chance.
"There’s an eleven-year gap between the first airing and the second interview. The first one, as 'mahilig mag-Facebook,' happened in 2011. The “Saksi” happened last Feb 25. The last one happened yesterday, March 3," Lester shared with PhilSTAR L!fe
TV exposure update: nagbalik na po tayo sa Kapamilya channel!
— Lester (@bujibabiera) March 3, 2022
Upgraded na rin. From mahilig mag-Facebook to Saksi to Cycling Advocate. pic.twitter.com/fuJz5ApgYF
Lester shared that for the first airing, he was asked by a friend who was a radio show producer at the time if he had tried Facebook video chat. It was the dawn of 2011 when Facebook was still testing out its video call feature.
"I agreed because I know how it feels to work in the media and getting someone on cam can be difficult, I didn’t expect that he’ll tag me as 'mahilig mag-Facebook,'" Lester said.
Soon enough, his face had become a meme for the Internet to behold
For his second airing with GMA's Unang Balita on February 2022, Lester witnessed a road crash where a drunk motorcycle driver crashed a delivery truck.
"I was the cyclist who was almost hit by the drunk driver. So while I was waiting for the police investigation, GMA reporter Darlene Cay came to cover the incident," he shared. "She interviewed me because I saw the whole thing."
TV exposure na naman ba ito? Abangan kung ano ang role ko mamaya sa balita. pic.twitter.com/iPlvvCpAh8
— Lester (@bujibabiera) March 3, 2022
His cycling adventures might have led him to a dangerous path in February, but other reporters soon caught wind of his advocacy. And no, it's not of being a Facebook enthusiast.
"I’m a cycling advocate — I own the cycling website and social media pages First Bike Ride."
"There was a time last year when ABS-CBN reporter Jacque Manabat learned about what I do and invited me to guest on her Twitter Space where we talked about biking," Lester shared.
"So when she’s making a report about featuring cyclists now that we’re in Alert Level 1, she thought of interviewing me."
As for his next TV appearance? Lester hopes that his love for cycling will lead him to earn the moniker of "Podcast host."
"My friends are joking, telling me na baka next time PBB Housemate na raw ako," he quipped. "[But] I have a podcast about cycling that will launch on March 10. It’s called 'Tambike Session'. I hope I get to promote it on TV, too—that would be awesome!"
You can follow Lester's cycling platform, First Bike Ride, on Facebook.