Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Benjamin “Benhur” Abalos, Jr. ordered on Monday, July 22, a thorough investigation to identify and hold responsible those behind the circulation of what he described as a fake video of President Marcos on social media.

“I am asking our Chief PNP (Philippine National Police) Gen. (Rommel Francisco) Marbil… to immediately create a task force to probe into this issue. We will really investigate this,” said Abalos in a press briefing at Camp Crame in Quezon City.

The video, which Abalos said, showed a person allegedly using illegal drugs and the DILG Chief said he wants to conduct an in-depth investigation to identify those behind the attempt to identify the person in the video as the President. 

The video was shown during a Maisug rally in the United States which was attended by supporters of former president Rodrigo Duterte.

For Abalos, the timing of the showing of the video was malicious as he emphasized that what was shown was a product of an application that digitally alters the face and body of a person in order to make it appear that it was the President.

In a press briefing at Camp Crame, Abalos showed a comparison of the President’s photo and the deepfake video and pointed out the difference between the person in the video and the President.

This was not the first time that the President was a target of deepfake videos on the Internet, with several incidents already being investigated by authorities this year. 

Abalos said he personally know the President and said he can vouch that the person in the video was not him, and insinuated that the timing of the posting of the video on social media was clearly an attempt to spoil the President’s third State of the Nation Address (SONA). 

“I have known the President for a very long time and I am saying that he does not indulge in these kinds of activities,” said Abalos.

“This was done maliciously. This is not right and this is very unfair to our President,” he added.

Deepfake

Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) Secretary Ivan John Uy said the video shown during the Los Angeles rally that was also being circulated online was “deepfake”. 

Merriam-Webster defined deepfake as “an image or recording that has been convincingly altered and manipulated to misrepresent someone as doing or saying something that was not actually done or said.”

Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. earlier said that the showing of the video was part of what appears to be a series of attempt to destabilize the government, using a fake video.

He linked this to several issues that are being floated, including the alleged walk-out of military officials, which he said, did not happen. 

Teodoro slammed  what he described as “maliciously crude attempt to destabilize the administration” as he assured the public that “they will not succeed.” 

“Even the release of the contrived video in the USA is a cowardly attempt to escape Philippine criminal jurisdiction,” said Teodoro.

He then urged concerned United States authorities to probe and bring to justice the perpetrators behind it.

'Pathetic'

Supporters of Marcos also lambasted those responsible for airing the video during the Maisug rally.

This was echoed by Presidential Adviser for Poverty Alleviation, Secretary Larry Gadon, who dismissed the rallyists and sympathizers as pathetic.

He described those behind the attack against Marcos as people who are bitter for failing to get a position in the Marcos administration.