Vloggers may face contempt if they skip House hearing anew – House reps

House of Representatives plenary. INQUIRER FILES

MANILA, Philippines  — Vloggers and social media personalities may be cited for contempt if they continue to skip the House of Representatives tri-committee’s next hearing, ranking lawmakers said on Wednesday.

In a statement, Santa Rosa City Rep. Dan Fernandez said the tri-committee, like all other committees, was allowed by Congress to summon individuals to testify during inquiries in aid of legislation, and any violation of subpoenas would result in possible contempt orders.

“Disinformation is a national security issue. It erodes public trust, destabilizes institutions, and manipulates democratic discourse. We cannot allow social media to become a free-for-all platform for deception and propaganda,” Fernandez, chairperson of the House committee on public order and safety and lead presiding officer of the tri-committee, said.

“Congress has the authority to summon individuals to testify on matters of public interest. Ignoring lawful orders is a direct challenge to our institution and the democratic principles we protect,” he added.

According to the tri-committee, the following may face contempt orders having skipped past hearings already:

• former Presidential Communications Office (PCO) Secretary Trixie Cruz-Angeles
• Aeron Peña
• Allan Troy “Sass” Rogando Sasot
• Elizabeth Joie Cruz
• Dr. Ethel Pineda Garcia
• Jeffrey Almendras Celiz
• Krizette Laureta Chu
• former PCO Undersecretary Lorraine Marie Badoy-Partosa
• Mark Anthony Lopez
• Mary Jean Quiambao Reyes
• Richard Tesoro Mata

Aside from Fernandez’s panel, the tri-committee is composed of the House committee on public information and the committee on information and communication technology.  The three panels have been tasked to probe the spread of disinformation online after several resolutions were filed and different privilege speeches about the matter were delivered.

READ: 40 socmed users, platform reps invited to House fake news probe

Surigao del Norte 2nd District Rep. Robert Ace Barbers was one of the lawmakers who delivered a privilege speech after fake news spread about him and the other chairpersons of the House quad committee, which was then probing illegal activities in Philippine offshore gaming operators, the illicit drug trade, and extrajudicial killings in the past administration’s drug war.

READ: ‘Fighting drugs since 1995’: Barbers laughs off ‘drug lord’ rumors

According to Barbers, a regulatory framework for social media use may need to be established, just like how mainstream media organizations and legitimate news outlets adhere to a set of ethical standards.

The lawmaker reiterated, however, that the hearing was not meant to stifle free speech, but to just keep in check possible abuse of freedom of expression.

“I just would like to reiterate that the objective of the hearings the Tri-comm is conducting is not to suppress the freedom of expression or the freedom of speech,” he said.

“In fact, we are all aware that this is provided for in our Constitution, and we’d like to respect the right of everyone to his own opinion or to his own expression. Contrary to what others may be thinking, this is not in any way a tool to suppress their expressions or opinions on certain issues, whether they may be political or economic or even other points of views,” he added.

Filipinos have long been considered to be one of the — if not the most — prevalent social media and internet users across the globe.  In a Digital 2022 report of social media management firm Hootsuite and creative agency We Are Social, Filipinos were found to have ranked second on the list of countries whose citizens spend the most time on the internet and social media — an average of 6 hours and 58 minutes per day.

However, heavy social media use also means that Filipinos are susceptible to misinformation and disinformation. Last May 2024, lawmakers urged the public to exercise discretion amid the spread of videos where President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s voice is being mimicked to announce that the Philippines was getting ready for war against China.

READ: ‘Deepfake’: PCO disowns clip of Marcos ‘attack order’ vs China

The PCO has already disowned the video, saying the voice there was made to sound like the president — stressing that Marcos has not made such an order to the Armed Forces of the Philippines.

Just recently, House lawmakers called out misinformation and disinformation attempts spreading on social media after former president Rodrigo Duterte was taken into custody by the International Criminal Court.

Some Duterte supporters have shared on social media posts stating that the Supreme Court received a petition containing 16 million signatures, asking that Marcos step down from office.

The Office of the SC spokesperson Camille Ting said the High Tribunal has not received any document bearing the title “Supreme Court Receives Petition on 16 Million Signatures Calling for President Marcos’ Resignation”, adding that their office has not issued such a document.

According to the SC, the supposed document was spread by Facebook accounts under the names “Choose Libungan” and “Bernard Flores Maicon.”

SC also vowed to investigate these acts of disinformation and take necessary measures, ”including the imposition of proper sanctions on those responsible.”