MANILA, Philippines — Days after the Comelec issue of “It’s Showtime” went viral, Vice Ganda underscored the function of Congress and Senate as a body that primarily crafts laws, not give dole-outs (ayuda).

Vice and his fellow co-hosts did an impromptu quiz bee. In one episode, he quizzed them about the government agencies as well as Philippine history.

In yesterday’s episode, Vice Ganda again did a “recitation” with the audience where he randomly selected a participant and asked them general information questions.

“Since trip na trip naman natin ang mag-search, buksan ninyo ang mga teleponono ninyo. Pwede mag-search. At least sinisumulan nating mag-search ng mga bagay na tungkol dito, hindi lamang kung sino ‘yung mga nag-hiwalay, sino ‘yung nag-unfollowan na artista, sino ‘yung tinutukoy sa blind item. Dibersyon naman talaga ‘yan pero ‘wag natin gawing lifestyle na ginagawa natin araw-araw. So, let’s research,” Vice began his intro with his impromptu quiz bee, where a right answer gets a cash prize of P2,000.

“No judgment,” he added, encouraging participants to join their quiz bee.

Some of the questions he asked were about complete names of the acronyms, DPWH and DILG, which are the government agencies, namely, the Department of Public Works and Highways and the Department of Interior and Local Government, respectively.

He also asked questions about Dr. Jose Rizal’s works, “Noli Me Tangere” and “El Filibusterismo,” as well as the history of the Philippine flag.

Vice Ganda also asked about the closure of ABS-CBN, which was closed during the Martial Law, and in 2020 after Congress did not renew its franchise.

Toward the latter part of quiz bee segment, he asked about thet three main branches of government, which are the Executive (law-enforcement e.g. president, cabinet); Legislative (law-making i.e. Congress and Senate); and Judicial (law-interpreting such as the Supreme court and lower courts).

“Ang trabaho talaga nila ay gumawa ng batas. Kaya dapat ang iboboto natin sa Kongreso at Senado ay ‘yung gagawa ng batas, ‘yung may alam na gawing batas, at may planong gumawa ng batas. Dahil ang Kongreso at Senado, ang ginagawa po niya talaga ay gumagawa ng batas, hindi nagbibigay ng ayuda. Law-making sila kaya dapat gagawa sila ng batas, hindi mamimigay sila ng pera,” the outspoken host said.

Last Friday, a 20-year-old contestant on the show’s “Sexy Babe” segment went viral for admitting that she lacks knowledge about the Commission on Elections (Comelec). The contestant visited the poll body’s office yesterday upon invitation where she was enlightened about its function, which is to govern everything election-related, especially with the upcoming mid-term elections in May.

The impromptu quiz bee segment in “It’s Showtime” garnered positive reviews and remarks all over social media. Many online users praised the show for using its wide-reaching platform to educate its viewers, apart from entertaining.

Many also suggested to bring back quiz shows, such as the ‘90s favorite “Battle of the Brains” hosted by David Celdran, as well as the educational shows “SineSkwela,” “MathTinik,” and “Bayani” on primetime slots of free TV. — Video from ABS-CBN News YouTube channel

WATCH: Vice Ganda quizzes audience on function of Senate, Congress