Bicol Saro Party-list Rep. Terry Ridon believes he knows the real reaaon behind the spread pf rumors such as the alleged deteriorating health of President Marcos and the ouster plot against House Speaker Faustino "Bojie" Dy III.

It's all meant to distract and ultimately, to discourage the members of the House of Representatives from carrying out the impeachment proceedings against Vice President Sara Duterte.

Ridon, a member of the House Committee on Justice, went as far as claim that the rumors--which he branded as part of a "propaganda war"--was the handiwork of Duterte's supporters.

“Tingin ko mga alyado po ni VP Sara ang pinagmumulan po ng mga rumors na ito (I believe these rumors are coming from allies of VP Sara),” the lawyer-solon said in an interview on Friday, April 10.

The reports of Marcos' supposed failing health and the plan to unseat his Partido Federal ng Pilipinas (PFP) party-mate, Dy are being floated at the same time on social media.

“Pag lagi po nga meron talks of a coup, pag lagi po meron talks, for example, challenging the health of the President, panggulo po ito doon sa pag-iisip din po ng House members, baka biglang magkaroon po ng palitan ng liderato, not just in the House but also at the level of the President hindi ba?" Ridon said.

(When there are constant talks of a coup, or constant talks, for example, challenging the health of the President, this causes disruption in the thinking of House members. They start to wonder if there might suddenly be a change in leadership, not just in the House but also at the level of the President, doesn’t it?)

"Para hindi sila mag-participate sa impeachment proceedings laban kay Vice President Sara Duterte (To prevent them from participating in the impeachment proceedings against Vice President Sara Duterte)," continued Ridon.

Malacañang has repeatedly denied the rumors about thr Chief Executive's health, and has even vowed to go after those spreading it.

As for the alleged plan to unseat Dy as Speaker of the 300-plus strong House, Ridon said the rumor lacks both sense and realism.

“Pero ang totoo ho, yung mga usapin ng mga coup kung 10 o 20 lang ho yung mga nag-uusap (But the truth is, these coup talks involve only about 10 or 20 people). It is something that will never be launched, and it will never be successful."

According to the party-list lawmaker, the Speaker can only be replaced by the majority of House members during an actual plenary session. Congess is currently on summer break.

“Sa Mayo pa ho babalik eh (Sessions will only resume in May). So if someone actually wanted to do a coup, it should have been launched on the first week of the actual session, kasi doon lang ho pwedeng magkaroon ng actual vote (because that’s the only time an actual vote could happen)," Ridon explained.

"I think these are the basis kung bakit tingin natin palipad hangin po ito, and it is basically part of a propaganda war against the impeachment (I think these are the reasons why we see this as mere hot air, and basically part of a propaganda war against the impeachment)," he said.

Ridon reckoned that Duterte stands to benefit from the rumors about the health issues of the President and the leadership change in the House.