Mocha on Rappler shutdown order: ‘Feels like Christmas’
“Tandaan niyo ang araw na ito, Jan. 15, napakagandang araw. Ramdam na ramdam mo pa din ang Christmas spirit, ngayon ko lang naramdaman ang tunay na diwa ng pasko.” (Remember this day, Jan. 15, a most beautiful day. You can still feel the Christmas spirit; only now do I feel the true meaning of Christmas.)
This is what Presidential Communications Operations Office Assistant Secretary Mocha Uson had to say on the Securities and Exchange Commission’s decision to revoke Rappler’s registration.
Asec. Uson went live on Facebook yesterday, the same day of the SEC’s ruling. Through a video, she invited the five million-strong followers of the famous Mocha Uson Blog to send hearts her way if they were happy about the news: “Napakagandang regalo nito. Kung masaya kayo na ganyan ang nangyari sa Rappler, pusuan naman ito.” (This is such a beautiful gift. If you’re happy about what happened to Rappler, react with a “heart” for this post.)
Image: Screengrab from Facebook/Mocha Uson Blog
Apart from her live video, Asec. Uson also shared a post which she entitled “Patungkol sa Rappler.”
“Ang pagbawi ng certificate of registration ng Rappler ay tagumpay ng rule of law,” writes Asec. Uson. “Pilit nilang pinaiikutan ang batas na naglimita sa foreign ownership ng media at ito’y napuna ng SEC. Lumabag sila sa batas, at ito’y pinarurusahan.” (The revocation of Rappler’s certificate of registration is a triumph of the rule of law. Rappler insists on skirting the law which limits foreign ownership of media and this was noticed by SEC. It violated the law and is now being punished.)
Image: Facebook/MOCHA USON BLOG
She also maintains that there was no violation of free speech.
Image: Facebook/Mocha Uson Blog
In yet more posts, Asec. Uson was found announcing that her office is open for accreditation of bloggers. Here, she suggests if Rappler journalist Pia Ranada and Rappler CEO Maria Ressa would like to apply.
Image: Screengrab from Facebook/Mocha Uson Blog
Moreover, Asec. Uson also created a poll where she asked her followers to vote “YES-Tanggalin ang ahas” (yes, remove the snake) or “NO-Alagaan ang ahas” (no, take care of the snake) if Rappler should or should not be removed from covering Malacañang.
Image: Screengrab from Facebook/Mocha Uson Blog
As of this writing, Asec. Uson’s posts about the SEC decision continue to receive support, garnering thousands of shares and thousands more likes from her followers.
While Asec. Uson’s posts are going viral, the hashtags #supportrappler, #isupportrappler and #istandwithrappler, along with a badge bearing these messages and Rappler’s logo, have gone viral as well. Supporters have adopted the badge on their profile photos and have been using the hashtags on their social media posts. JB
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