in News & Culture, Politics, Social Media

Netizens react to Pres. Bongbong Marcos Jr. decrying fake news

Addressing an audience of information commissioners, accompanied by his own communications chief Secretary Cheloy Garafil, Marcos emphasized the significance of transparency and access to information.

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President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who gained the most advantage from disinformation in the 2022 presidential polls, expressed on Monday, June 19, his belief that “fake news should have no place in modern society.”

The President also revealed plans for a ‘media and information literacy campaign’ that will be digital and ‘youth oriented.’

Marcos served as the featured speaker at the International Conference of Information Commissioners (ICIC) in Pasay City, a gathering hosted by the Philippines for the first time.

The Philippines, in conjunction with Chile, the United States, Albania, Bermuda, Kenya, and South Africa, holds a position in the ICIC executive committee.

The ICIC is envisioned as a ‘global forum’ of information commissioners, or in Manila’s case, a secretary, ‘for the protection and promotion of access to information laws in order to improve transparency and accountability for the benefit of everyone.’

Addressing an audience of information commissioners, accompanied by his own communications chief Secretary Cheloy Garafil, Marcos emphasized the significance of transparency and access to information.

He specifically drew attention to the Freedom of Information Program, which currently applies solely to the executive branch of the government.

Despite multiple attempts to enshrine freedom of information (FOI) into law, previous efforts have consistently faltered in Congress, even during the previous administration when an FOI bill was purportedly a priority legislation under former President Rodrigo Duterte.

Notably, Marcos has not included FOI legislation in his list of priority bills.

Presently, the Philippine government handles FOI requests through both in-person submissions and a website that notably excludes the Office of the President, including the office of Marcos and certain affiliated offices.

To request FOI-related information from the Office of the President, individuals must send an email to the relevant Malacañang office.

Inquiries and responses made through the electronic FOI portal are made public, which differs from the treatment of email requests.

Marcos said that access to information and food governance was at the very core of his government’s development plan.

The specific details of the literacy campaign initiated by the Marcos administration have not been disclosed yet.

Meanwhile, netizens blasted Marcos over his remarks.

 

Former communications chief Trixie Cruz-Angeles previously announced a plan to combat misinformation, but it was not included in the 2023 budget. It remains uncertain whether the literacy campaign is connected to the previous plan or it will be funded in the upcoming fiscal year through the 2024 budget.

Various studies have indicated that Marcos derived significant benefits from years of misinformation and disinformation leading to and during the 2022 presidential campaign.

Independent news organization Vera Files found that Marcos Jr. was the primary beneficiary of election-related disinformation in 2021, with Robredo being a favored target.

The fact-checking coalition Tsek.PH reported that Marcos was the most prominent beneficiary of disinformation in January 2022 alone, while Robredo suffered the most as a victim.

In 2019, an investigative series by Rappler documented the Marcoses’ utilization of social media to rehabilitate their image more than three decades after the removal of their patriarch, dictator Ferdinand Marcos, from power.

Marcos himself has made several false claims in the past.

Media organizations have fact-checked claims made by the President, his statements as a candidate, and claims made by his supporters.

For example, Marcos had previously asserted that he held a degree from Oxford University, but it was later revealed to be a special diploma. Fact-checks have also debunked claims that Marcos was responsible for constructing the wind farm in Ilocos Norte.

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Written by Charles Teves

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