Robredo debunks anew fake news about her, urges public to be vigilant

FILE: Vice President Maria Leonor “Leni” Robredo (Photo: VP Leni Robredo/Facebook)

Vice President Maria Leonor “Leni” Robredo urged Filipinos to be vigilant against rampant fake news, as she blasted anew another false information about her that recently circulated online.

Robredo said this after a screenshot of a news article, where she allegedly asked Congress to “allow early campaigning for Liberal Party (LP) members,” went viral on social media.

“This is another attempt to mislead the public, and it is way too obvious where the aggressive misinformation has been coming from,” the Vice President said in a statement

“Magta-tatlong taon na, patuloy pa rin ang panlilinlang dahil hindi matanggap ang pagkatalo (It is almost three years, but misinformation continues because they cannot accept defeat),” she added.

Citing the link of the original article, Robredo then urged the public to be “more vigilant against lies being spread, online and offline, and to always check the sources of what is being shared on social media.”

Robredo was referring to an article of Manila Bulletin entitled, “Robredo asks Congress to restore law vs. early, premature campaigning.”

However, the original headline was edited and replaced with, “Robredo asks Congress allow early campaign for Liberal Party only, other parties not allowed.” The first paragraph of the article was also changed.

A screenshot of the fake news item was then posted by Facebook user Christian Pido to a group named “Marcos Loyalist,” along with a caption, “Wow!!! Gusto ni Leni na special treatment para sa mga animal na Liberal (Leni wants a special treatment for members of the Liberal).”

The local broadsheet on Friday already clarified that such article was “never” published on their online platform.

“We ask the public to be cautious and responsible when sharing information online to prevent further confusion,” the Manila Bulletin said.

Since she became the Vice President of the country, Robredo became the target of numerous malicious stories and fake news.

Last month, the Social Weather Stations (SWS) debunked an article regarding an alleged SWS survey on the Robredo’s state of mental health.

The article posted in the Daily Readers website said the pollster found out that out of its 1,500 survey respondents, 45 percent of them believes that Robredo has a “mental problem.”

The SWS, however, said it did not conduct any survey related to the state of mental health of any government official or individual.

[READ: Alleged SWS poll on Leni Robredo’s mental health ‘fake news’ — SWS]