The camp of Vice President Leni Robredo on Monday, April 11, condemned the circulation of an alleged porn content linked to a member of her family and is studying legal options against those who fabricated them.
Although Robredo’s spokesman Barry Gutierrez did not disclose who was being pertained to in the video, Twitter posts already identified it as the Vice President’s eldest daughter, Aika.
“Malinaw na krimen ito (This is clearly a crime),” he said in a statement.
“This is a malicious fabrication and we have reported it to the platforms concerned para matake-down (to take down). Our lawyers are studying our options for legal action,” he added.
Gutierrez described these allegations as a mere “distraction” and “a direct and vile response to the momentum we continue to gain.”
While he believed “it won’t yield votes for those who are spreading it,” the former lawmaker warned of an underlying agenda.
READ: Diokno calls on Google to remove 'malicious links' vs Robredo’s daughter
“Ang mas malalim na goal ng ganitong (The deeper goal to this) tactic, ‘yung manggigil tayo at magwala sa (that we get so livid and run amok on) social media. Para awayin natin ang mga tao at hindi tayo maka-convert (So we fight with people and we don’t convert),” Gutierrez said.
“Kaya nga ang tamang response dito (That’s why the right response here): Hold the line tayo para sa pag-ibig (for love). Be firm but kind sa pagtatama ng (in correcting) disinformation, kahit gaano ito kawalanghiya (no matter how vicious it is),” he added.
Gutierrez said the way to defeat such malicious allegations “once and for all” is to win the elections, fix the system, and hold accountable those responsible for spreading false information.
In a tweet, Robredo reminded her supporters that the “best antidote to fake news is the truth.”
“Let us not lose focus. Tuloy tuloy lang ang paggawa ng kabutihan (Continue doing good). This was how I survived the last 6 years,” she tweeted.
Reports about planned purported attacks against the Robredo sisters—Aika, Tricia, and Jillian—started making rounds on social media site Twitter over the weekend.
READ: Robredo, family targeted for 'demolition', says Trillanes
Supporters of the Vice President said that a planned demolition job will be launched against the Robredo sisters after Holy Week.
This was not the first time Aika was targeted by malicious reports. In 2017, false rumors were posted on social media sites about her being arrested by the police while studying at the prestigious Harvard University.