Manila Mayor Honey Lacuna-Pangan reminded the residents to always get the correct information from reliable sources and not be a victim of the black propaganda being waged against her administration.
She said the residents can go to their barangays to confirm information, instead of merely relying on social media platforms which are not always reliable and credible.
Lacuna-Pangan made the pronouncement as she and Vice Mayor John Marvin "Yul Servo" Nieto made rounds in the barangays which are holding their Second Semester 2024 Barangay Assembly themed, "Talakayan sa Barangay: Aktibong Diskusyon ng Pamayanan Tungo sa Masigla at Maunlad na Bagong Pilipinas," as mandated by the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG).
The mayor addressed the fake news being allegedly circulated by her political rival that the senior citizens are being deprived of their monthly allowances.
"Sabi ng isang marites, inaapi daw namin ang seniors at di natatanggap ang allowance (A gossip said that we are oppressing the seniors and they are not receiving the allowance)," the mayor said.
During her speech, she directly asked the senior citizens present if they receive their monthly allowances, to which they replied in the affirmative.
Apart from the updated senior allowance payouts, she also recently signed the city ordinance which doubles the senior residents' monthly allowance from P500 to P1,000 starting 2025.
"Hindi lahat ng nasa Facebook o YouTube ay totoo. Marami pong fake news ngayon (Not everything on Facebook or YouTube is real. There is a lot of fake news today)," she said.
'Yung wala daw akong ginagawa, fake na fake po 'yan. Di lang ako mahilig mag-post ng mga ginagawa ko at walang kamerang laging nakasunod dahil tahimik akong nagta-trabaho at nagdadala ng serbisyo diretso sa tao (They say I'm not doing anything, that's fake. I just don't like to post what I'm doing and there's no camera that always follows because I work quietly and bring service directly to people)," Lacuna-Pangan stressed.
The city government also stated that the mayor along with the leaders of the city's bureaus and departments visit at least one barangay every week to bring the Manila City Hall's essential and basic services straight to the residents through their "Kalinga sa Maynila" program.
"There, the residents are able to air their concerns, complaints or questions which are directly addressed by the city officials led by the mayor herself," it added.
The local chief executive said that the stalls are manned by personnel from the departments, bureaus and offices that offer among others, free checkups and medicines; vaccination of pets; replacement or processing of identification cards and; purchase booklets for senior citizens, persons with disabilities and solo parents and birth, marriage or death certificate concerns.
The lady mayor added that the city's public employment service office is also there to offer job opportunities for the unemployed residents.
Meanwhile, the mayor urged the residents to actively participate in the barangay assembly.
Under the Local Government Code, barangays are required to hold a barangay assembly every semester to keep their constituents informed of the undertakings of the barangay officials, especially on its fund allocations.