At least three posts circulating online are claiming that President Ferdinand Marcos is not in the Philippines after he was flown to another country due to an illness. This is false.
On Feb. 10, two Facebook users posted the incorrect claim within a short time interval. The following day, another user published the exact same statement. The text in the posts read:
“Breaking News Magandang Buhay, Wala na po sa Pilipinas ang PNGULo,Emergency dinala sa ibang Bansa para malalan sakit”
(Breaking News: The President is no longer in the Philippines. He was urgently taken to another country to [determine/serious] his illness)
There are no official reports that Marcos recently went to another country for any medical reason. The president was in the country on the days the posts circulated.
On Feb. 10, he attended the meeting of the third Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council in Malacañang Palace, where he signed 21 priority bills, including the abolition of the travel tax. The Presidential Communications Office (PCO) published photos the same day showing Marcos with other government officials.
He also appeared live on Feb. 11 at the signing ceremony of the memorandum agreement between the Department of Education and several provinces for a nationwide classroom building program. Marcos can be seen delivering a speech starting at the 5:05 mark of the live video shared by the official FB page of RTV Malacañang.
The false claims appeared after PCO Undersecretary Atty. Claire Castro announced that the president spent a night under medical observation on Jan. 26 after “experiencing discomfort.” In a video, Marcos assured the public that he is in good condition, although he admitted he skipped an event to consult with his doctors.
VERA Files previously fact-checked similar fabricated claims related to the president’s health.
As of writing, the post published by FB user Kaka Randy Usman, received 4,200 reactions, 700 comments, and 796 shares. Other copies shared by FB users Sil Guillemer and Boss Nmy collectively garnered 1,808 reactions, 1,605 comments, and 161 shares.
