Look who’s behind fake news

“FB page Confeermed’s fabricated quote card already got almost 5,600 FB interactions and could have reached around 755,000 netizens. The page, plus public FB groups -- SEN TRILLANES POWER and VP Leni Robredo Angel Warriors International -- are the post’s top traffic generators”.

This is part of the findings of fact-checker Vera Files which slammed the Facebook page “Confeermed for fabricating a quote ascribed to Sen. Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go as saying he will suggest to Pres. Rodrigo Duterte to replace “whining government employees” with Chinese workers by granting them civil service eligibility.

Ellen Tordesillas, president of Vera Files bluntly said that the statement which had been making the rounds in social media was fabricated by Confeermed and dubbed it Fake. The other damning revelation which the fact-checker bared was that two other Facebook groups, namely “Senator Trillanes Power and “VP Leni Robredo Angel Warriors International” are Confeermed’s posts top traffic generators.

Vera Files noted that the fake quote was published on March 1 on Facebook (FB) by Confeermed, which also regularly publishes content critical of the Duterte administration.

Knowing that Vera Files is also critical of Duteterte’s administration, I inquired from Ellen to ascertain whether their report I read on FB is true. Her response was straight forward: “Jun, we do not want lies, regardless of political color”. Well, that’s the fact-checker speaking and she even enunciated that “the neophyte senator did not make such a statement”

Says Vera Files: “A cursory search of the whole quote and a keyword search using only parts of the quote have yielded no official record or document proving that Go really made the statement. No media organization reported on it either."

This is the third attempt to discredit Pres. Rodrigo Duterte by opposition quarters by implicating Bong Go in some shenanigans knowing how intimate and trusted he is to the Chief Executive. The first try was when they made a fuss over a scribbled note on the documents that pertain to the purchase of naval frigates which Bong, who was then head of the Presidential Staff, referred to the Department of National Defense for appropriate action. He was summoned by the Senate even as the head of the Navy, Vice Admiral Ronald Mercado, declared that Bong has nothing to do with the frigate deal which was approved by the Aquino administration.

The second try was when the so-called whistle-blower alias “Bikoy” linked him to a fairy tale titled “Ang Totoong Narco List” which was later debunked by Jumel Advincula who admitted to being the hooded man Bikoy.

And then the preposterous story of Confeermed which quoted the Senator as saying he will propose to Duterte to issue civil service eligibility to Chinese nationals so that they can replace Filipinos who camplain of meager salary. The idiots behind Confeermed did not even check whether this is possible under the Philippine laws.

Well, Bong Go had become enured to the desperate moves of the dying opposition he simply issued a brief denial and went on with his work in the senate and untiringly extends assistance to victims of calamities and establishing Malasakit Centers in nearly every nook and corner of the country.

It is despicable that while Sen. Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go is doing his best as a legislator and public servant bringing government closer to the people there are characters who will not stop at nothing to gain or regain power. I wonder who is funding “ Confeermed”, “VP Leni Robredo Angel Warriors International” and ex-“Sen Trillanes Power”? I hope it’s not taxpayers' money.