The Presidential Communications Office (PCO) has debunked allegations that President Marcos was supposedly handed by a civilian a sachet of "white substance" and said what the President received was a lapel pin of the emblem of the Partido Federal ng Pilipinas (PFP).

In a Facebook Reel uploaded on Saturday, Sept. 28, the PCO's fact-checking arm "Maging Mapanuri" posted a video denying claims that the Chief Executive received what his detractors claim as illegal substance.

A low-quality video of the supposed handover, taken from the official high-resolution feed of the Radio Television Malacañang (RTVM), spread like wildfire on different social media platforms. The caption claimed that the exchange was "shamelessly" happening publicly in broad daylight.

In the video, the PCO said that the clip spreading online was taken out of context. It explained that what President Marcos received from a civilian was a lapel pin of his party's logo.

"Kahit malinaw ang footage, kapag tinanggal ang tamang konteksto, madali itong magagamit upang lumikha ng mga maling kwento (Even if the footage is clear, if you take it out of context, you can easily create false stories)," the PCO said.

"Isang simpleng pagkilos na binibigyan ng ibang interpretasyon dahil sa kakulangan ng buong kwento (A simple act that can have a different meaning because of a lack of context)," it added.

The PCO advised the public not to be easily fooled by materials online that might be taken out of context. To avoid spreading misinformation, it said people should try to put the post in context.

Second, the PCO said the public should observe the details. Regarding the footage in question, the PCO pointed out that the civilian man was obviously waiting for an opportunity to take a selfie with the President. When Marcos approached him, he handed the President the lapel pin of PFP's emblem inside a small transparent bag.

"Ang pag-blur ng katotohanan, pagputol ng mga clips, o pagbibigay ng impormasyon nang wala sa tamang konteksto ay nagiging mabisang paraan upang malinlang ang publiko (Blurring the truth, splicing clips, or spreading out-of-context information are effective ways of fooling the public)," it said.

"Huminto, mag-isip, at magsaliksik (Pause, think, and research)," it reminded the public.

This is the second consecutive weekend that the PCO has debunked allegations that President Marcos is using illegal drugs. Last week, Acting Communications Secretary Cesar Chavez, citing a report from independent fact-checker Vera Files, said India-based artificial intelligence (AI) experts further proved that the video of a man, who appears like the President, sniffing illegal drugs was fake.