House working hard, spreading fake news won’t help – Speaker Dy

MANILA, Philippines — House of Representatives Speaker Faustino Dy III has urged individuals with ill intentions to stop starting and sharing fake news as it would not help solving the countries’ problems.

During the resumption of Congress’ session on Monday, Dy assured the public that the House is working hard, and has been focused on providing relief to people.

“Ito po ang diwa ng ating paglilingkod: handa sa anumang hamon, at laging nakatuon sa kapakanan ng bayan. Kaya para sa mga nagtatanim ng pagdududa sa isip ng taumbayan, nakikiusap kami na itigil ninyo na ang pagpapakalat ng fake news dahil hindi ito nakakatulong sa pagresolba sa mga problema ng ating bayan,” Dy said in his opening speech.

(This is the essence of our service: we are ready for any challenge, and we are always focused on the people’s welfare.  That’s why to those trying to sow seeds of doubt, we appeal to you to stop spreading fake news because this does not help resolve the country’s problems.)

“Gusto ko rin pong idiin na wala po kaming ibang hangarin kundi makapaglingkod, at gawin ang aming mga responsibilidad dito sa Kamara. Gagawin namin ang aming mandato at tungkulin nang makatarungan at tapat sapagkat naniniwala kaming walang anumang katumbas ang prinsipyo at dangal,” he added.

(I also want to stress that we have no other goal but to serve the people, and do our responsibility here in the House.  We will do our mandate and duty justly and honestly because we believe that there is nothing worth more than principles and dignity.)

According to Dy, each decision that the House makes is based on whether it would be for the welfare of the people.

It is unclear what particular misinformation or disinformation is being called out by Dy, but Bicol Saro party-list Rep. Terry Ridon said he is supporting the speaker’s call, particularly calling for an an investigation into the misinformation allegedly from by independent channel Peanut Gallery Media Network (PGMN).

According to Ridon, PGMN engaged in disinformation operations by showing different electric accounts to justify its claims of exorbitant rise in power costs.

Ridon said that while rising electricity rates are legitimate concerns that should be solved by authorities, the use of disinformation only hampers legitimate calls for government action.

According to Ridon, the now-viral content from PGMN showed a person claiming an increase in her electric bill from around P700 to P7,000 in a span of eight months — or from October 2025 to May 2026.

However, the solon noted that the two bills belonged to different accounts.

“A closer look at one of PGMN’s viral content would show that the person in the video is actually presenting electric bills with different Customer Account Numbers: a. CAN: 2209188031, October 6, 2025 bill showing a total amount of P724.47; b. CAN: 0494824258, May 7, 2026 bill showing a total amount of P7,009.64,” Ridon said.

“PGMN and the person in the video should clarify why different Meralco account numbers were featured, and whether these CANs refer to the same household over the last several months.  Without such clarification, this appears to be fake news and, worse, public disinformation,” he added.

Later in the day, Ridon said he has filed House Resolution No. 980 asking the committee on public information to conduct an inquiry in aid of legislation on organized disinformation operations — including PGMN’s viral posts.

Prior to this call, Dy thanked different lawmakers and congressional panels for working through the chamber’s break — including the committee on justice for tackling the impeachment complaints against Vice President Sara Duterte.

In his speech during the resumption of session on Monday, Dy started by thanking the Legislative Energy Action and Development (LEAD) joint committee which discussed measures that can mitigate the effects of the Middle East conflict.

Dy then touched on the impeachment issue by thanking the committee on justice and its chairperson, Batangas Rep. Gerville Luistro.

“Aside from the LEAD Joint Committee, the other committees remained active like the committee on justice that focused on the impeachment hearings,” Dy said.

“To our colleagues who stepped forward to take the lead in these key House activities —Deputy Speaker Rachel Arenas, House Justice committee Chairperson Jinky Luistro, and House Ways and Means Chairperson Miro Quimbo; along with the chairperson of the 13 committees that built the LEAD Joint Committee — thank you very much,” he added.

According to Dy, under the House, committees continued to “function with focus and discipline.” /gsg