A Facebook post claims that Davao Rep. Paolo Duterte replaced Leyte Rep. Martin Romualdez as the new House of Representatives speaker. This is not true.
It was Deputy Speaker Faustino “Bodjie” Dy III of Isabela who was voted by majority of the chamber to the speakership on Sept. 17.
Uploaded on Sept. 17, the post’s thumbnail partly read:
“MAY BAGONG SPEAKER NA! NELIGWAK (sic) SI TAMBA! PAPALITAN NI CONG PULONG (There’s a new speaker! Tamba removed! Replaced by Cong Pulong).”
It also carried the caption:
“BUMALIKTAD LAHAT sa KAMARA SIBAK si ROMUALDEZ TUMAKAS NA? lPALlT si CONG PULONG DUTERTE (Everyone in the chamber abandoned Romualdez, who fled? Replace him with Cong Pulong).”
Romualdez was not ousted from his post. He formally resigned after getting dragged into a corruption exposé by contractor-couple Sarah Discaya and Curlee Discaya, who allegedly gave kickbacks from flood control projects to some lawmakers.
“We respect the independence of the chamber and acknowledge the contributions of former Speaker Martin Romualdez. We now look forward to working with Speaker Faustino Dy III to advance measures that strengthen the economy, ensure basic services, and protect our democracy,” Malacañang said in a statement released by the Presidential Communications Office.
Romualdez will remain a member of the House.
Facebook page Duterte Active Supporters (created on Nov. 14, 2017) published the erroneous post, collectively garnering over 684 reactions, 265 comments, and 67 shares.
Editor’s note: This fact check was produced with the help of a journalism student of the University of Santo Tomas as part of their internship at VERA Files.
