Malacañang is open to banning social media platforms and gaming applications, including Facebook, that are deemed potentially harmful to the youth.

Palace Press Officer and Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro said President Marcos is open to banning anything that could potentially be harmful to the youth.

"Sa lahat ng maaaring gaming apps, lahat ng puwedeng masabing makakasira sa ating mga kabataan at sa bansa natin, open po ang Pangulo na matanggal ang lahat ng iyan (As for anything else that could potentially be harmful, including gaming apps and anything that could negatively affect our youth and our country, the President is open to having all of these removed)," Castro said in a Palace briefing on Tuesday, Aug. 25.

Asked if the President would also consider banning the social media platform Facebook, Castro said, "it would be worth considering" if necessary and if studies warrant a ban.

The Palace spokesperson also cited the proliferation of fake news on social media as a factor to consider in banning a platform.

"Kung kinakailangan po at ito po ang napag-aralan kasi marami po talagang … hindi lamang po sa nagiging marahas iyong nakikita natin sa iba’t ibang klase ng social platform at sa social media, kailangan din pong pag-aralan kung ito ba ay nakakabuti sa paglaganap ng mga fake news sa ating bansa (If necessary, and if studies show that it is warranted, because there are really many concerns—not only the violence that we see on various social platforms and social media, but also whether these platforms contribute to the spread of fake news in our country)," Castro said.

She also stressed that it would be worth considering banning a platform, especially if it fails to respond quickly to requests to protect its users from violence and fake news.

"Kung hindi magkakaroon ng accountability ang anumang social media platform at parang nababalewala ang ating mga hiling para maproteksiyunan ang ating mga kababayan laban sa karahasan, laban sa fake news, kung mabagal ang pagtugon, ay magandang pag-isipan at pag-aralan kung dapat silang manatili na parte ng ating sistema (If social media platforms are not held accountable, and our requests to protect our people from violence and fake news are being disregarded, or if their response is slow, then it would be worth considering and studying whether they should continue to be part of our system)," Castro said.