Angat Buhay program on Friday pushed back against Lorraine Badoy, the former spokesperson of the government's anti-communist task force, by seeking legal charges against her for her "shameless" and "baseless" red-tagging of the non-governmental organization.
In a statement, Raffy Magno said the NGO condemns and unequivocally denies accusations made by Badoy, who linked the organization to the Communist Party of the Philippines in a recent television interview.
"Her claims are utterly baseless and completely false, and worse, encourage the harassment of our staff members, volunteers, and partners," Magno said, calling Badoy's red-tagging as "shameless."
It would be another legal complaint against Badoy, who was also accused before the Office of the Ombudsman of violating the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices over red-tagging spree.
Lawyers of Angat Pinas Inc., the NGO that runs the Angat Buhay programs, are now pushing back. Magno said the NGO is already preparing legal actions against Badoy to protect "the integrity of our organization and our work and, more so, to protect our volunteers and partners."
"To our friends and supporters, rest assured that we are not taking this sitting down. We will not allow these efforts to sabotage our work to prosper," he said.
"The time to stand up to fake news and hold its purveyors to account is now. As with our Chairperson, former Vice President Leni Robredo, our word is our bond. Thank you for standing with us," he added.
Magno said the NGO will continue to work to empower marginalized communities and sectors.
"Our work is beyond personalities and politics. Our work is about fundamental values. Our work is about leaving no one behind," he added.