Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte on Thursday, Aug. 4, denied social media reports about the death of her father, former QC Mayor and Speaker of the House of Representatives Feliciano “Sonny” Belmonte Jr.
Different Facebook posts announcing the death of the former mayor circulated on social media.
One post said that the elder Belmonte died at around 1:05 p.m. on Aug. 4, at the age of 85.
The local government said that they also received calls from people to verify the false reports.
“There is absolutely no truth to this alleged 'Breaking News' item. By God's Grace, my father is alive, well, and in good spirits,” the mayor said.
She also thanked those who expressed their concern as well as those who took time to verify if the reports are true.
“I can assure everyone that my Dad is perfectly healthy,” she said.
“Like other fake news of this nature, I can only speculate its origins, and wonder why several deceptive art cards were posted at approximately the same time. Needless to say, I would like to request all truth-loving netizens to kindly refrain from sharing this false information, and if possible, correct it if they encounter it on their social media feeds,” Belmonte added.