The senator suggested discarding Chinese-made computers and communication equipment used by the Philippine military – not a blanket ban on all Chinese products
Filipinos have been vocal in opposing China’s island-building activities in the West Philippine Sea even during the early phases of construction, when news and photos of the reclamation projects were made public in 2014. Furthermore, it was in 2013 when the Philippines challenged China’s expansive maritime claims by filing a historic case with an international tribunal.
There is no such agreement signed between the Philippines and Zimbabwe. The ambassador-designate visited Malacañang on August 10 to present her credentials to Marcos. They also discussed enhancing bilateral relations between the two countries.
Marcos is not the first Philippine president to give out cash incentives to athletes, and he did not make history by doing so as previous presidents followed what was prescribed by law. Under Republic Act No. 9064, signed in 2001 under the Arroyo administration, national athletes who win medals in international competitions are entitled to cash awards. Republic Act No. 10699, signed in 2015 under the Aquino administration, expanded the coverage of incentives granted to national athletes and coaches. Previous presidents, including Rodrigo Duterte, Benigno Aquino III, and Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, have also given out cash incentives to winning athletes during their presidencies.
The K to 12 program has neither been abolished nor replaced by K-10. DepEd has launched a revised version of the kindergarten to Grade 10 curriculum, which is still part of the K to 12 program. The education department’s video of the launch even refers to the updated curriculum as “K to 10 Curriculum of the K to 12 Program.”
Although Diokno was the highest-paid government official in 2020 and 2021, former BSP governor Felipe Medalla ranked number one in the 2022 Commission on Audit Report on Salaries and Allowances (ROSA). Medalla, who served as BSP governor from the start of the Marcos presidency on June 30, 2022, until July 2, 2023, earned P34.172 million in 2022 with the breakdown as follows: P9.3 million in basic salary, P24,000 in honorarium, P11,863,947.14 in allowances, P11,892,648.16 in bonuses, incentives, and benefits, and P1,091,913.04 in discretionary, extraordinary, and miscellaneous expenses.
The product Barley Grass Powder is using Tagle’s image without his permission for the misleading ad. The Facebook account that posted the photo is not Tagle’s official and verified account.
Filipinos have been vocal in opposing China’s island-building activities in the West Philippine Sea even during the early phases of construction, when news and photos of the reclamation projects were made public in 2014. Furthermore, it was in 2013 when the Philippines challenged China’s expansive maritime claims by filing a historic case with an international tribunal.
China has not started its invasion of Taiwan. The video does not show any proof to support its claim. Instead, it shows unrelated clips of what appears to be a military drill. Superimposed text also implies that the soldiers shown in the video are Chinese Special Forces who have begun occupying Taiwan, although no identifying insignia can be seen.
Ong does not promote the said Hairtech product. In the original video, Ong even said at the 10:56 timestamp: “Wala po akong ina-advertise. Ayan na naman itong mga fake ads, gagamitin na naman itong video natin. O heto po, generic sasabihin ko, wala akong brand ha.” (I am not advertising anything. Here are the fake ads again which will use our video. Here, I will mention generic names, no brands).
There are no announcements from the official Facebook pages of the Philippine Department of National Defense (DND), the US Department of Defense, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), the United States Department of State, or the US Embassy in the Philippines confirming the sale or delivery of the rocket system to the Philippines.
The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) does not mention any super typhoons entering the PAR in its latest weather bulletin. According to its 4 pm forecast on Monday, August 7, 2023, there are currently no tropical cyclones inside the PAR.
The Reuters report cited in the video does not exist. Using Advanced Google search, Rappler found no Reuters articles bearing the claim. There are also no statements or reports from the official Facebook pages of the US Coast Guard and USCGC Munro confirming the supposed incident. There were no articles from news organizations about the alleged altercation between the two countries either.
Marcos said the investment pledges from Malaysian companies will have a valuable contribution to the Philippines’ economic growth. Malacañang said that Malaysian businesses were interested in investing in sectors related to food production, transportation, and technology, among others.
The video did not show any proof to support the claim. It only showed clips taken during a joint press statement given by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on July 31. No mention of the supposed incident in Ayungin Shoal can be seen in the transcripts of both Marcos’ and Von der Leyen’s statements during the event. The two leaders discussed trade, energy, and security during the official visit, which marked the first time a president of the European Commission visited the Philippines.
The post advertising supposed employment opportunities with the BIR is fake. Clicking the link in the post redirects users to an e-commerce platform and to a fake BIR website. The official website of the BIR is www.bir.gov.ph and their official and verified Facebook page is www.facebook.com/birgovph. On Friday, July 28, the Presidential Communications Office (PCOO) posted on its official and verified Facebook page refuting the “misleading” BIR job postings circulating on social media.
The post advertising supposed employment opportunities with the BIR is fake. Clicking the link in the post redirects users to an e-commerce platform and to a fake BIR website. The official website of the BIR is www.bir.gov.ph and their official and verified Facebook page is www.facebook.com/birgovph.
The video didn’t show any proof of the supposed incident and only showed clips unrelated to the claim. There are no official reports from the Facebook pages of the BRP Antonio Luna, the Philippine Navy, or the Department of National Defense confirming that the Philippine warship destroyed a Chinese vessel. There are also no reports from government and media sources confirming that such a standoff happened recently near Ayungin Shoal.
The video shows RTVM footage of Marcos’ speech during the signing of the law creating the sovereign wealth fund on July 18. Contrary to the claim, Marcos did not say that the Philippines would no longer need to borrow money from other countries, particularly from China.
The video lacked any supporting evidence for its claim. Instead, it merely showed an unidentified submarine with on-screen text suggesting that the Philippines’ first-ever submarine was spotted in Manila Bay. Furthermore, there are no official reports from the Philippine Navy or the Department of National Defense confirming the arrival of such a submarine.
As of Wednesday, July 26, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) has not made any announcements regarding Taal Volcano’s imminent eruption. According to the agency’s Taal Volcano Summary of 24 Hour Observation, the volcano is currently at Alert Level 1, indicating “low-level unrest.” This means that there is a moderate level of seismic activity and that steam-driven, gas, or hydrothermal explosions can occur without warning.
Both actresses deny endorsing the product. On June 2, Cuneta debunked the claim in a post on her official and verified Facebook account and called the ad “fake news.” “FAKE NEWS! Someone on Facebook has been using me and other people in their ads. Di ko po ginamit ang produktong ito EVER! Huwag bibilhin at baka magkasakit lang po kayo,” Cuneta said. On July 20, Mendiola also released a public advisory on her official and verified Facebook account, saying the use of her image in the ad campaigns was “unauthorized.”
Ong does not endorse the said “whitening medical toothpaste.” In a previous email response to Rappler regarding other supposed endorsements using his name, picture, and video clips, he said these were “fake ads made by scammers.” Ong added that this also applies to the post promoting Aquacool. Ong has repeatedly said that he does not endorse any product except for Birch Tree Advance, an adult nutritional supplement powder drink. He has previously warned the public against misleading ads through his YouTube and Facebook videos uploaded on April 18, April 19, and May 7, and in a “Notice to the Public” Facebook post on April 18.
USS James E. Williams, the US Navy warship shown in the video, is not in the Philippines. It arrived in the United States on July 14 after a seven-month deployment in the Mediterranean. The YouTube channel that made the false claim used a video uploaded by user Brian Shipman on March 26, 2023. According to the video’s caption, the ship shown is the guided-missile destroyer USS James E. Williams sailing in the eastern Mediterranean. A US Navy press release states that USS James E. Williams returned to Norfolk Naval Station in Virginia on July 14 after a seven-month NATO deployment through the Mediterranean Sea.
Ong does not endorse Glufarelin. In an email to Rappler, Ong said of the numerous posts attributed to him: “All of these are fake ads made by scammers.” Ong has repeatedly said that he does not endorse any product except for Birch Tree Advance, an adult nutritional supplement powder drink. He has also made several posts warning the public against deceptive advertisements through videos uploaded on his YouTube channel and Facebook page on April 18, April 19, and May 7, as well as on a “Notice to the Public” Facebook post on April 18.
The late Marcos’ last will and testament made no mention of reinvesting his family’s wealth into the MIF or for any fund for the benefit of the Filipino people. Signed on June 23, 1988, Marcos’ will stated that all of his estate “of every nature and kind” would be bequeathed to his wife and four children. Furthermore, the video does not provide any evidence to back up its claim. Instead, it only showed RTVM footage of Marcos signing the new law. The President’s speech also does not mention reinvesting the family wealth into the fund.
As of writing, Kidneys Nano is not on the Philippine Food and Drug Administration (FDA) lists of registered food and drug products. The product is also not in the database of US FDA-approved drug products.
The tweet attributed to Durant is manipulated. Durant and Sotto never played with each other in an official game. On July 14, Twitter user @dontelloversace asked Durant to name the most underrated player he has played with in his career. On his official and verified Twitter account, Durant answered: “Good question, I can say a few guys but the name that comes to mind first is Jeremy Lamb.”
There have been no announcements from the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) about any super typhoon that is forming or has entered the PAR.
The ship in the video is not an Italian warship, as claimed. A Google reverse image search shows that the vessel is actually the German frigate Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (F218), one of four Brandenburg class frigates commissioned by the German Navy.
The supposed registration link is fake. Clicking the link in the post redirects users to a dead link on an e-commerce website. The official website of the DSWD is www.dswd.gov.ph.
Though news reports do confirm that the Euphrates River is at risk of drying up, there are no articles substantiating the accompanying claim of “mountains of gold” being discovered on the riverbed.
Chinese vessels were spotted roaming the Iroquois Reef, not Recto Bank. There are also no official reports of Marcos ordering the Philippine Navy and the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) to surround the Chinese vessels. The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the PCG said they would intensify patrols in the area, but made no mention of “encircling” the Chinese ships.
The quote card is a recycled version of similar fake posts used to promote the unregistered product Glufarelin, and the Facebook page that posted the claim is not affiliated with the Philippine General Hospital (PGH).
It’s impossible for Hinohara to endorse Golden Insu because he died in 2017. The video uses a stock photo that it claims to be Hinohara.
Remulla remains the current head of the Department of Justice (DOJ). Neither the DOJ nor Marcos has made any announcement stating that Remulla has been dismissed or will be replaced by Marcoleta. There are also no news reports about the supposed appointment.
As stated in previous fact-checks on supposed earthquake predictions, there is currently no way to make accurate predictions specifying the exact date, time, and place where an earthquake would occur. The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) has previously said that at present, “no one has the capacity to determine when an earthquake will strike, at what precise magnitude, and where the strong one will hit.” The United States Geological Survey (USGS) also said that neither they nor other scientists know how to predict major earthquakes.
DepEd issued the memorandum in relation to its automatic payroll deduction system. The memo does not state that ACT has made illegal deductions from teachers’ salaries. Despite repeatedly red-tagging the country’s largest teachers’ group, Duterte did not make any statements alleging that ACT transfers the supposed funds to the CPP-NPA-NDF.
The Livestock Philippines 2023 trade fair was held concurrently with Aquaculture Philippines 2023, an international expo focused on aquaculture nutrition and health production. Both events have also been held simultaneously at least once before 2023. The YouTube video showed RTVM’s coverage of Marcos’ speech on the opening day of the co–located events on July 5 at the World Trade Center in Pasay City.
There are no official announcements from the Japanese government confirming the deployment of a warship in the West Philippine Sea. The ship featured in the video has the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) flag hoisted at its stern or back end. The vessel also bears the number 825. Using advanced Google search, Rappler found a United States Naval Institute news report showing that the ship in the video is the JMSDF fast attack craft JS Wakataka (PG-825). There are no official news reports from the embassy of Japan in the Philippines, the Philippine Navy, and the Philippine Coast Guard that said Japan sent the JS Wakataka to the Philippines.
The video did not show any proof that the Supreme Court (SC) is now looking into the disbarment of the two lawyers. It only showed excerpts of a Politiko article reporting on Gadon’s statements following his disbarment. There’s also no known current disbarment case against De Lima and Diokno pending in the Supreme Court. The High Tribunal has also not issued any official statements regarding the issue on its official website.
Aquino was aware of UNCLOS as she signed an executive order that explicitly mentions the convention also known as the “constitution of the oceans.” On June 5, 1988, Aquino signed EO No. 328 reconstituting the Cabinet Committee on the Law of the Sea, which had been established by virtue of EO No. 738 signed by Marcos in 1981.
The Philippines opened its doors to Jewish refugees escaping the Holocaust and Vietnamese refugees fleeing the Vietnam War under former presidents Quezon and Marcos, respectively. Contrary to the claim, the refugees were not all sent to a remote island. Jewish refugees found sanctuary in the capital Manila, while Vietnamese “boat people” were hosted in refugee centers in the provinces of Palawan and Bataan, which are not at all remote.
No supposed Marcos wealth will be used for the sovereign wealth fund. According to Senate Bill No. 2020 or the Maharlika Investment Fund Act of 2023, initial capital and funding for the fund will come from government financial institutions and the national government. The bill states that P50 billion will come from the Land Bank of the Philippines, P25 billion from the Development Bank of the Philippines, and P50 billion from the national government. The fund will also not draw from the Philippines’ excess wealth, foreign reserves, or pension funds.
It was the Second Division of the Sandiganbayan that junked the ill-gotten wealth case, not the Supreme Court’s. No mention of the High Tribunal was made anywhere in the CNN Philippines report referenced in the YouTube video.
As of June 29, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) has not released any advisory regarding the supposed imminent volcanic eruptions of Biliran, Mahagnao, and Cabalian.
While it is true that the late president invested in strengthening the Philippine military, the country’s modernization program was not significantly more advanced than China’s at the time. Academic studies pointed out that the Philippines was “militarily weak” in the mid-1970s while China had already been producing weapons with the Soviet Union in the 1950s.
The website that offers the supposed subsidy is fake. The official website of the DSWD is www.dswd.gov.ph. On further inspection, the address of the fake website is merely a string of letters and numbers with no reference to the DSWD, suggesting that the link could be a phishing site intended to obtain sensitive personal information from a user. On Tuesday, June 27, the social welfare department posted an advisory on its official and verified Facebook page clarifying that the website making the rounds online is not affiliated with the agency. It also reminded the public to beware of online scams from fake DSWD websites.
The video was taken in Norway, not Mindanao, and the vessel shown is a different ship, not the USS Ronald Reagan (CVN-76). YouTube user Jan Woldstad posted the original video on June 3, 2023. According to the video’s title, the ship shown is the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R Ford (CVN-78) leaving Oslo Harbor on May 29, 2023 after a port call.
The neurotechnology company Neuralink has not yet started human trials. Rappler debunked a similar claim that circulated on Facebook on June 12. On June 16, Reuters reported that Musk expects Neuralink to start its first brain implantations in humans “later this year.” Musk made the announcement at the 2023 Viva Technology conference in Paris, France.
Drilon’s interviewer, host Pinky Webb, had previously set the record straight back in 2020 when the false claim first surfaced. In a Twitter post on March 2, 2020, Webb wrote: “Here’s what happened. As I was laying the premise for my question, I saw Sen Drilon look down at the documents he had on the table. I did not see him fall asleep.”
The US request for the Philippines to temporarily accept people from Afghanistan waiting for special visas is “humanitarian in nature,” according to the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA). In an interview on ANC Headstart, Philippine ambassador to the United States Jose Manuel Romualdez said that no backlash is expected should the Philippines deny America’s request. He, however, emphasized that it was “morally right” to take in the Afghans “whose lives are in danger” in Taliban-ruled Afghanistan. The envoy also clarified that the Afghans were not refugees, but former employees of the US government.
Nakalagay sa kabuuan ng video ang tekstong “Nakuha na ang Marcos account.” Gumamit ang video ng ilang clip mula sa programa ng pakikipagkita ni Marcos sa mga Pilipino sa Amerika noong Mayo 1 na kinuha mula sa video recording ng Radio Television Malacañang. May ipinakita ring isang dokumentong sertipikasyon umano ng pagkakaroon ng $300 duodecillion na trust deposits na nakalagak sa “siyam na World Bank at pitong International Monetary Fund.”
Volcanic eruptions “do not follow predictable schedules,” according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS). Claims that the Yellowstone supervolcano is due to erupt any time soon is not supported by scientists. Michael Poland, a geophysicist and the current scientist-in-charge of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory, explained in a 2023 Live Science report: “[Volcanoes] erupt when there is enough eruptible magma beneath the surface, and pressure to cause that magma to ascend. Neither condition is in place at Yellowstone right now.”
The Philippines is neither close to achieving 100% rice self sufficiency nor surpassing it. A November 2022 report from the Philippine Statistics Authority shows that the country’s self-sufficiency rate for rice stood at 81.5% in 2021, lower than the previous year’s 85%.
The post lacks context. While it does not state that the photos were of the ill-fated Titan submersible, it would be easy for people to assume that they are, based on the attention and engagement that the post has received in such a short amount of time. The photos used are actually from 2004 and came from the University of Rhode Island’s Institute for Exploration, Center for Archaeological Oceanography and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Office of Ocean Exploration. The pictures show some of the remains of the original RMS Titanic, which struck an iceberg and sank in 1912. Its wreck was first discovered in 1985. One of the pictures in the Facebook post can be seen in this 2021 article from the Associated Press, which reported on plans to explore the wreckage of the Titanic by OceanGate
According to the website of the United States Army Acquisition Support Center, Chinook helicopters are manufactured by the US aerospace company Boeing. The company has not issued any press release announcing that it constructed a Chinook factory in the Philippines. There are also no reports from official sources that support the claim. The company manufactures the helicopters at the Boeing Chinook Factory in Ridley Park, Philadelphia.
The Philippines has not purchased the HMS Queen Elizabeth. No announcements of the supposed purchase can be found on the Philippine Navy’s website and official Facebook page, nor on the official Facebook page of the British embassy in the Philippines. There are also no news reports regarding Manila’s supposed acquisition of the vessel. The carrier is currently in the arsenal of the UK Royal Navy, as listed on its official website, and is currently on deployment with the UK Carrier Strike Group.
The Philippines did not receive any anti-aircraft weapons and anti-ship missiles from Germany, according to Lieutenant Colonel Enrico Gil Ileto, chief of the AFP Public Affairs Office. In a text message to Rappler on Wednesday, June 21, Ileto said that the only recent transfer of military-grade equipment came from the government of Japan. “From Japan, we received radars—air surveillance radar systems,” he added.
Currently, scientists do not have the technological capabilities to accurately predict when and where an earthquake will occur. What earthquake-monitoring agencies such as the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) can do is calculate the probability of a major earthquake occurring in a specific area within a certain period of time, according to a 2022 explainer released by Rappler. However, these probabilities cannot accurately predict the exact time an earthquake could occur.
The video does not provide any evidence to support its claim. There are also no official announcements regarding any supposed government takeover of the two companies.
Fabregas is alive. In an Instagram video he uploaded on June 16, Fabregas showed himself on camera and said, “Mga kababayan, ngayon po ay June 16, 2023. Ako po ay buhay na buhay, ayan nakikita ninyo.” (My countrymen, today is June 16, 2023. I am very much alive, as you can see.)
As of June 17, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) has not posted any warnings or alerts on its volcano bulletin board about an imminent volcanic eruption in Bukidnon.
Hindi totoong sa panahon lamang ni Duterte nagamit nang lubos ang kaban ng bayan para sa mga pampublikong protekto. Katunayan, ilan sa mga proyektong inilunsad umano ng administrasyong Duterte ay minana lamang mula sa nakaraang administrasyon ni dating pangulong Benigno Aquino III.
Mayon Volcano remains at Alert Level 3 as of Saturday, June 17. Phivolcs has not made any announcements regarding a change in alert level status. The video, posted on June 14, falsely claimed that Phivolcs raised the alert status to Level 4. However, the agency’s Mayon Volcano Summary of 24 Hour Observation report released on the same date showed that the volcano was still at Alert Level 3, which means that there was a “high level of volcanic unrest” and that there was an increased tendency towards a hazardous interruption. The summary further reported that seven volcanic earthquakes and 309 rockfall events were recorded.
The figures cited in the screenshot are incorrect and misleading. The NSO, now the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), releases annual expenditures, not summaries of government spending by presidency. It is also misleading to compare the peso values without adjusting for inflation.
Under Senate Bill No. 2020 or the proposed Maharlika Investment Fund (MIF) Act, the MIF will source its start-up capital from government financial institutions and the national government. No part of the bill mentions any investment of supposed Marcos wealth or gold. A total of P125 billion will come from the Land Bank of the Philippines (P50 billion), the Development Bank of the Philippines (P25 billion), and the national government (P50 billion). The MIF will also not draw from the Philippines’ excess wealth, foreign reserves, or pension funds.
The video’s title and thumbnail image claims that Super Typhoon Dodong has entered the PAR, but there have been no announcements from the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) about any new tropical cyclone following the most recent one, Chedeng (Guchol).
Senate Bill 1869 seeks to establish a Center for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC) in the Philippines and empowers health officials to enforce public health measures, although provisions in the proposed law specify conditions for exercising these powers. Health undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire earlier said that the bill will fill the gaps in health crisis response and will prepare the country for future pandemics or threats to public health. “Nowhere can you find within this CDC draft bill any provision that will state we’re going to have a medical martial law,” Vergeire said.
Neuralink said in a tweet that recruitment for the trial has not yet opened, telling its Twitter followers that more details would be available soon. In the same tweet, the company announced that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had already approved starting human clinical trials for its brain implant device.
Even before the New Year incident, the NAIA Terminal 3 had been experiencing power outages back in 2016 and, more recently, in September 2022.
The video did not show anything to support the claim. It just showed two unrelated videos – a photo of an alleged gold bullion certificate of ownership and a clip of Marcos during the FFCCCII convention.
The Supreme Court (SC) in 2017 affirmed the Sandiganbayan’s ruling on the forfeiture of former First Lady Imelda Marcos’ Malacañang collection as it was declared ill-gotten. Section 2 of Republic Act No. 7080 states that “any and all ill-gotten wealth and their interests and other incomes and assets” are “forfeited in favor of the State.”
No statements were released on Marcos’ official Facebook and Twitter accounts, Radio Television Malacañang (RTVM), or the Office of the President indicating that he had issued an order for Davila to leave the country. Content on these platforms consisted mostly of netizens’ comments urging Marcos to take action against Karen Davila.
As of writing, there have been no official announcements from the US embassy in the Philippines, Philippine Air Force, or Philippine Army regarding any acquisition of an MV-22 Osprey helicopter by the Philippines.
A press release from the United States Department of Defense and a fact sheet about EDCA released by the US embassy in the Philippines show that Subic was not chosen as an EDCA site.
According to the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (US CDC), there is no cure yet for diabetes. The product known as Hạ An Đường in Vietnamese is not on the Philippine Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) list of approved drugs and food products.
The Facebook post implies that the supposed offers were made recently after a fire razed the iconic building last May 21. As of writing, there have been no announcements or news reports about any bid offers. Additionally, Manila Mayor Honey Lacuna said no new building will rise on the site as the heritage building is protected by law.
Google and Yandex reverse image searches reveal that the aircraft in the video is a Mitsubishi F-2 fighter plane, not a Chinese fighter jet. According to the website of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI), the F-2 aircraft is a “close support fighter jet owned by the Japan Air Self-Defense Force” developed from the late 1980s to the early 1990s. It was jointly developed by MHI and American company Lockheed Martin Aeronautics as the principal US subcontractor.
According to the ADB website, the bank was founded in the 1960s with the aim of fostering economic growth and cooperation in Asia. A resolution passed at the first Ministerial Conference on Asian Economic Cooperation held by the United Nations Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East in 1963 paved the way for the creation of the regional bank. The ADB was officially established through an agreement adopted by the Conference of Plenipotentiaries on the Asian Development Bank, convened in Manila in December 1965. The agreement came into force on August 22, 1966.
Ilang dekada nang nasa pangangalaga ng Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) ang mga alahas ni Imelda Marcos na nakolekta noong umalis sa bansa ang pamilya noong Pebrero 1986. Pinabulaanan na rin ni dating PCGG Commissioner Andrew Castro ang claim na ito nang una itong nag-viral noong 2015. Ayon sa isang Philstar.com report, nilinaw ni Castro na walang access ang mga Aquino sa mga alahas dahil nakatago ito sa isang high-security vault.
Pinky Aquino-Abellada, Aquino’s elder sister, confirmed the death of the former president in a statement she read at Heritage Park on June 24, 2021. The family said Aquino died peacefully in his sleep at 6:30 am. His death certificate specified the cause of death as renal disease secondary to diabetes. Later that day, Aquino’s youngest sister Kris told the media that the body had been cremated. The former president was laid to rest on June 26, 2021.
A reverse image search shows that the ships in the video are the De Zeven Provincien Class frigates of the Royal Netherlands Navy. The Dutch Navy has four air defense and command frigates, namely the F802 (HNLMS De Zeven Provinciën), F803 (HNLMS Tromp), the F804 (HNLMS De Ruyter), and the F805 (HNLMS Evertsen). They were commissioned between 2002 and 2005 and are currently in service with the Royal Netherlands Navy.
Contrary to the video’s claim, Aquino could never have had access to the jewelry. For nearly three decades, the Marcoses’ ill-gotten jewelry collection has been stored in a vault at the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. Moreover, former Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) commissioner Andrew de Castro told The STAR that since the jewelry is kept in a high-security vault, Aquino had no way to access it.
Marcos did not mention his family’s alleged gold bullion account in his opening statement at the ASEAN Summit.
The video mistakenly refers to the Bilateral Defense Guidelines between the Philippines and the US as the “Mutual Defense Guidelines of 2023.” It conflates the recently-established defense guidelines with the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT).
The video cited Marcos’ sectoral meeting with the Department of Agriculture on February 28, 2023, that discussed how to ensure food security. Among the topics brought up was the National Food Security Convergence Program, which aims to support Philippine farmers and enhance the wealth creation capacity of the agriculture sector.
English and British monarchs are known as the supreme governor of the Church of England, and are bestowed the title Defender of the Faith or Fidei Defensor in Latin. The title was first granted to King Henry VIII by Pope Leo X in October 1521, in recognition of the king’s theological treatise Assertio Septem Sacramentorum (Defense of the Seven Sacraments), which defended the sacrament of marriage and the supremacy of the papacy. According to the Church of England, the title was also occasionally granted to other monarchs, such as King James V of Scotland.
The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) has repeatedly warned the public against supposed earthquake predictions. There is currently no way to predict the exact time and place where an earthquake would occur.
There is no record of the elder Marcos visiting South Korea when he was president, based on a January 2013 Official Gazette article titled “The Foreign Trips of the Presidents,” which lists presidential foreign trips from 1935 until November 2012. The list covers state visits, official visits, working visits, summits, and private visits.
As of writing, Glufarelin is not on the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) list of registered food products and drug products. The quote card template has been repeatedly reused to promote the unregistered drug, differing only in the name and photo of the person supposedly making the statement. Some fabricated quote cards, such as this one attributed to a US expert, uses the same statement but in Filipino. ABS-CBN previously said in a Facebook post that the quote card graphics were “manipulated.”
Ayon sa pinakahuling tala ng World Gold Council noong Pebrero 2023, nasa 208,874 tonelada ng ginto pa lamang ang namimina sa buong mundo, kung saan humigit-kumulang dalawang-katlo ang namina mula noong 1950. Malayo ito sa sinasabing 1,161,336,676 toneladang gold bullion sa sertipikong ipinakita.
The alleged fatalities mentioned in the video came from a war game simulation conducted by US-based think tank Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) and are not based on real events. The results of the simulation were published by CSIS in a report published in January 2023 called “The First Battle of the Next War.”
Iloilo provincial tourism officer Bombette Heler said that while the posts appear to have been posted for fun or as a hoax, local tourism offices were flooded with inquiries about the new destinations. “Apparently, many fell for the posts even if these were just made for fun. But some municipal tourism officers were irritated by this as it also affects them,” Heler said. He added that the matter will be discussed in a May 13 meeting with the Department of Tourism-Western Visayas and municipal tourism offices. On April 26, the Capiz Tourism and Cultural Affairs Office (CTCAO) posted a statement on its Facebook page debunking the posts.
There are no official announcements that the K to 12 program has been discontinued. On April 24, Arroyo filed House Bill 7893 which proposes a “K+10+2” program to replace the K to 12 curriculum. In her explanatory note, Arroyo stated that the current program has failed to produce job-ready graduates. The Pampanga 2nd district Representative wrote: “In a country like the Philippines where the poverty incidence is 18%, there should be an option for the young to graduate from basic education soonest, after four years of high school, so that they can help their parents in their farms or micro-businesses.”
The contents of the video floated the idea that Marcos’ meeting with World Bank Group officials in September 2022 intended to discuss claiming interest from gold deposits supposedly made by the late Ferdinand E. Marcos. However, no evidence supported this claim.
While the video claims the incident occurred “last week,” the near-collision happened last April 23, when the BRP Malapascua and BRP Malabrigo were intercepted by Chinese coast guard vessels in the vicinity of Ayungin Shoal.
Davao Oriental State University president Dr. Roy Ponce, who has conducted extensive research on Pujada Bay, told Rappler that the “Sleeping Dinosaur” can be more appropriately described as a peninsula or promontory, not an island. Articles posted on the Davao Oriental government website, such as these posts from 2019 and 2020, also refer to the land formation as a promontory. The provincial government of Davao Oriental also called the land feature as a “Sleeping Dinosaur” and did not refer to it as an island in a Facebook post published on April 4, 2023.
Marcos did not announce that NAIA would be renamed. While the video’s title claims that the President has issued such an order, the contents of the video do not support this claim, and instead focus on former Senator Franklin Drilon’s opposition to a proposal to rename the airport.
Two days after it was posted, the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) spotted the claim and immediately belied the content of the video. “The Office of Civil Defense Region VIII would like to clarify that the Tiktok video circulating online pertaining to the schedule of multiple volcanic eruptions and tsunamis in Leyte and Southern Leyte has no scientific proof, thus, FALSE,” the OCD statement on Wednesday, April 19, said.