A post claiming that Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle has told churchgoers they had “no right to worship God” if they did not vote for Otso Diretso is a hoax.
Website p4cmardu30.blogspot.com published the fake post on May 15 with the headline “Cardinal Tagle: Wala na Kayong Karapatan Magsimba sa Dios, Mga Traydor (Cardinal Tagle: You don’t have the right to worship God, traitors).”
The post is now defunct but its link, along with headline and photo, continues to be shared by netizens. It claimed that Tagle blamed those who did not support the opposition Senatorial slate for the lineup’s loss in the midterm polls, and quoted the clergyman as saying:
“Sa lahat ng hindi bumoto sa otso diretso… lumabas na kayu dito sa simbahan.. Wala na kayung karapatan magsimba sa Dios!! Mga traydoor.. (To all those who did not vote for otso diretso… get out of this church.. You have no right to worship God!! Traitors..)!!”
The website also produced a quote card bearing the same quote, superimposed on a July 2018 UCA News photo of Tagle.
There is no record on mainstream news media, Tagle’s social media channels, or even the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) reflecting p4cmardu30.blogspot.com’s claim.
The fake story was published about five days after the CBCP released a statement saying Tagle did not endorse any candidates and that the archbishop only endorsed “the process of discernment that each person can do as they prepare and choose candidates to vote for the coming election.”
P4cmardu30.blogspot.com began publishing posts in March 2017.
(Editor’s Note: VERA Files has partnered with Facebook to fight the spread of disinformation. Find out more about this partnership and our methodology.)
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