Editor’s Note: This story was updated on March 25, 2025 to include a fact check on another fake statement, this time attributed to broadcast journalist “Kabayan” Noli De Castro.
(UPDATED) Fake statements being attributed to Filipino television personalities supposedly showing their solidarity for former president Rodrigo Duterte have been published by several Facebook (FB) pages and netizens, shortly after he was arrested on March 11.
Readers also sent similar claims to VERA Files’ Messenger Misinformation Tipline for verification.
‘Vice Ganda’
Published on March 11, one such post showed a screenshot of a tweet allegedly from TV host and comedian Vice Ganda, with the handle @viceganda. She was quoted as saying:
“Ayaw kong magpaka-hipokrito ha, aminin natin nung time ni FPRRD, karamihan ng adik nagbagong buhay, karamihan sa kriminal nag-uunahang sumuko, dahil sa takot kay Duterte.
Confident kayong lumabas sa gabi dahil alam niyong yung mga kriminal at masasamang loob nabawasan na. Kung hindi si Duterte yung namuno ng pandemic, lahat tayo, patay. Lahat ng pondo ng gobyerno ginamit ni Duterte maitawid lang tayo sa pandemic.
(I don’t want to be a hypocrite, let’s admit that during the time of [former president Rodrigo Roa Duterte], most of the drug addicts had reformed, and the majority of criminals surrendered, because they feared Duterte.
You were confident to go out at night because you knew criminals and villains had decreased. If it wasn’t Duterte who led during the pandemic, we’re all dead. Duterte used all government funds to get us through the pandemic).”
The comedian has refuted this tweet. In an FB post, Vice Ganda disowned the statement circulating on social media and advised the public to not believe similar posts. She said:
“Maging mapanuri at huwag basta maniwala sa impormasyong walang malinaw o opisyal na pinagmulan (Be critical and don’t just believe information without clear or official source).”
Vice Ganda has only one account on X. Her official handle is @vicegandako, not @viceganda.
‘Kabayan Noli De Castro’
Five days later, on March 16, a different FB user published a screenshot of broadcast journalist “Kabayan” Noli De Castro during a TV Patrol newscast. The following statement was attributed to him in the accompanying caption:
“Noli De Castro : Di ko binoto si PRRD dahil gustong gusto ko talaga si VP Leni (pero wag na natin isabay sa isyu ang ibat ibang partido sa usaping ito dahil nangyari na ang nangyari naging presidente na sya at naawa ako sa kalagayan nya ngayon. Di ko alam bat ako nakakaramdam ng awa sa dating pangulo Lalo na’t makita ko yong physical appearance niya and siguro dahil mahal ko din ang magulang ko.”
and
“Former President Rodrigo Roa Duterte / Tatay Digong did not start the war to kill, he started it to save. He gave drug addicts a chance to change, to surrender, to choose a better life. But many refused. They kept using, kept selling, kept killing innocent people. So, what should a leader do? Let criminals destroy families, or take action to stop them?”
De Castro has already debunked the alleged statement through his official FB and Instagram accounts, where he shared screenshots of the post and labeled them as fake.
ABS-CBN News also published an article disproving the claim.
The screengrab in the fake post originated from the March 14 episode of TV Patrol, where De Castro reported on the details released by the ICC regarding Duterte’s case.
An advanced keyword search using Google also revealed that the caption was first posted by a Duterte supporter on FB.
The fake screenshots spread after Duterte was served an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court for his bloody drug war.
The fake “Vice Ganda” posts uploaded by FB users and pages Blah blah (created Nov. 26, 2023 and claims to be a satirical page) and Toristang Trabahante (created Feb. 21, 2023) have collectively garnered 35,321 reactions, 3,041 comments and 84,117 shares.
The counterfeit “Kabayan” quote has garnered 17,000 shares, 6,900 reactions, and 74 comments as of writing.
