A Facebook reel showing a news clip from Net 25 claims that former president Rodrigo Duterte, who has been detained at The Hague, Netherlands, has passed away. This is not true.
The video used an edited news report aired in 2024 to deceive viewers into thinking that it was about Duterte’s death.
Published on Sept. 13, the 7-second video shows Net 25 anchor Alex Santos supposedly reporting the passing of the former president, saying:
“Patay na si dating pangulong Rodrigo Duterte, ayon po yan kay Senador Christopher Bong Go. (Former president Rodrigo Duterte has died, according to Sen. Christopher Bong Go).”
The video included a superimposed text that read: “Duterte patay na (Duterte is dead).” In the caption, the user wrote:
“HALA REST IN PEACE, Pumanaw nadaw si former President Duterte ngayon lang, Kung totoo man eto Rest in Peace, If hindi man, Thank you dahil you still need to face your trial in court before facing the trial in heaven
(SO REST IN PEACE, Former president Duterte has reportedly died just now. If this is true, Rest in Peace. If not, thank you because you still need to face your trial in court before facing trial in heaven).“
A combination of reverse image and keyword searches led to a news report posted by Net 25 on TikTok and YouTube on June 6, 2024, when rumors about Duterte’s passing were circulating.
The introduction of the original report was cut. In the original report, Santos said: “Fake news ang kumakalat sa social media na patay na si dating pangulong Rodrigo Duterte, ayon po ‘yan kay Senador Christopher Bong Go.”
Also omitted was the latter part of the report, which showed footage of Go with Duterte in his house in Davao City, where the former president appeared alive and in good health.
In a Facebook post, the official page of Net 25 debunked the claim and called it fake.
“Mariin po naming pinasisinungalingan ang videong ito. Ito ay palsipikado, mapanlinlang at sinadyang baguhin upang magpakalat ng maling impormasyon at kalituhan sa ating mga kababayan,” the network wrote.
(We vehemently deny this video. This is falsified, misleading and deliberately altered to spread wrong information and confusion among the people.)
It also urged the public to be cautious and to avoid sharing unverified information.
On Sept. 8, the International Criminal Court postponed the Sept. 23 confirmation of charges hearing for Duterte after his lawyers requested an indefinite adjournment, claiming he was “not fit to stand trial” due to cognitive impairment and difficulty recalling events.
However, Veronica “Kitty” Duterte, the youngest daughter of the former president, said on Sept. 12 that her father is “alive and well.”
Posted by Facebook page Byaheng Filipinos (Nov. 4, 2021), the false reel has so far garnered 1.4 million views, 2,300 reactions, 2,100 comments, and 619 shares. Another copy was shared by Facebook user Joyce Anne Atlata (created Dec. 16, 2013), which earned 5.2 million views, 13,400 reactions, 8,000 comments, and 1,300 shares as of writing.
