SAN FRANCISCO, Agusan del Sur — Agusan del Sur Governor Santiago Cane Jr. has called on the police in Veruela town to file charges against a pastor who posted false information in social media about two supposed coronavirus-infected persons in the province.
Pastor Michael Ef Perez Gumonit, 29, of the International One Way Outreach Foundation, has already apologized for the act.
In an earlier Facebook post, Gumonit claimed that there are two COVID-19-infected persons in the villages of San Gabriel and Sta. Emilia in Veruela, citing an information relayed to him by a church member who is a member of the Barangay Peacekeeping Action Team (BPAT).
In an eight-minute video uploaded on Facebook, Gumonit claimed responsibility for posting the false information, and issued an apology to Cane and Veruela Mayor Myrna Mondejar.
Despite the apology, Cane urged the police to pursue cybercrime charges.
“If all who spread fake news will be forgiven after saying sorry, this practice will never end. A case has to be filed,” Cane stressed.
Cane had said that the false information spread by Gumonit “is more dangerous than the virus.”
Police operatives apprehended Gumonit in his house in Binongan village. The pastor voluntarily went with the policemen to the municipal police station for further interrogation.
Cane told Colonel Ringo Zarzoso, provincial police director, to let the Veruela police chief explain why no action was taken by his station on the misdeed of Gumonit.
Cane said the spread of the false information by Gumonit caused panic among the people in Veruela town and nearby areas.
There are seven persons under monitoring in Agusan del Sur, six of whom were already cleared while one is awaiting completion of a 14-day home quarantine.
Cane announced on Friday that there is a lone patient under investigation (PUI) who experienced coughing while on the last day of his 14-day quarantine.
The PUI is an overseas worker from Thailand who went on vacation in his hometown in Sta. Josefa.