Former president Rodrigo Duterte (Facebook)

La Union 1st district Rep. Paolo Ortega V has denounced the spread of fake "quote cards" from famous--and infmaous--personalities who were made to look like they were giving messages of support for the detained former president Rodrigo Duterte.

Such quote cards on social media featured United States (US) President Donald Trump, Adult film star Johnny Sins, and even fictional character Saul Goodman from the hit American TV crime drama “Breaking Bad".

“These fabricated narratives are meant to stir chaos and cast doubt on legal proceedings. It’s alarming that some people are so desperate to twist reality that they’ll even invent quotes from fictional characters," Ortega said.

"Ano na lang ang tingin sa atin ng international community? (What will the international community think about us?)” the exasperated solon said.

Duterte is undergoing trial before the International Criminal Court (ICC) at The Hague in the Netherlands for crimes against humanity in connection with his bloody war on drugs. He is detained at the ICC.

Reports from fact-checking organizations like VERA Files have revealed that much of the disinformation surrounding Duterte’s arrest is pro-Duterte, with false claims spreading across Facebook, TikTok, and YouTube. 

These include manipulated videos depicting protests in Argentina and Serbia as supposed rallies for Duterte in the Philippines.

The manipulation is done by overlaying chants of "Duterte! Duterte!" on videos.

(Fake quote card grabbed from Facebook)

“The ICC’s jurisdiction over the case has been affirmed, yet the same false claims keep circulating, misleading people into believing otherwise. We need to combat this flood of fake news with facts, not propaganda,” Ortega said.

Ortega--a member of the House "Young Guns" bloc--urged Filipinos to be vigilant and verify information before sharing it online.

“Sa huli, sino ang talo rito? Tayong mga Pilipino (In the end, who loses? It's us Filipinos). If we allow fake news to flourish, we lose our credibility as a nation. Let’s not allow disinformation to define our democracy,” he said.