Public warned of fake news vs House probe

House of Representatives Quad-Committee —Official Facebook page of the House of Representatives

MANILA, Philippines — House Deputy Majority Leader Margarita Nograles on Sunday asked the public to be wary of fake news targeting members of the quad committee as well as representatives who have raised concerns over allegedly mismanaged funds of the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and the Department of Education (DepEd).

The PBA party list representative cautioned the public on misinformation and fake news peddled by “influencers” and troll farms, which are expected to step up their activities against members of the House of Representatives.

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In previous weeks Kabataan party list Rep. Raoul Manuel, Marikina City Rep. Stella Quimbo, and Manila Rep. Bienvenido Abante Jr. have been targeted by misinformation from “influencers” and trolls apparently for their scrutiny of the spending of the OVP as well as the DepEd when Vice President Sara Duterte was concurrent secretary.

According to Nograles, troll farms seem to be going after House members who have raised concerns over the alleged mismanagement of the DepEd and the OVP and those who helped the quad committee ferret out the truth on the link between Philippine offshore gaming operators, extrajudicial killings in the war on drugs, the narcotics trade and other syndicated crimes.

She claimed the strategy was to tap “influencers” to propagate misinformation and disinformation and have trolls comment they believe the lies and spread them to gain traction in social media.