A quote card showing broadcast journalist Noli “Kabayan” De Castro supposedly defending former president Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs is again circulating online. This is fake.
De Castro debunked the bogus quote in March when it first emerged, and several media organizations have repeatedly fact-checked the alleged statement ascribed to the erstwhile vice president and news anchor.
The new version of De Castro’s supposed message to Duterte, which resurfaced once again on an FB page on Nov. 6, appeared to be a Filipino translation of an excerpt from the original fake remark. Parts of the lengthy statement read:
“Si dating Pangulong Rodrigo Roa Duterte, o Tatay Digong, ay hindi nagsimula ng giyera kontra droga para pumatay ng tao-siya ang nagsimula nito para magligtas ng buhay. Binigyan niya ng pagkakataon ang mga gumagamit ng droga na magbago, sumuko, at pumili ng mas mabuting landas…Ngayon, tingnan mo ang bansa ngayon. Wala na si Duterte, at bumabalik ang problema sa droga. Tumataas na naman ang krimen. Kaya tanungin ang iyong sarili: siya ba talaga te ang problema, o siya lang ba ang sapat na matapang na lutasin ito!”
(Former president Rodrigo Roa Duterte, or Tatay Digong, did not start the war on drugs to kill people—he started it to save lives. He gave drug users a chance to change, to surrender, and to choose a better path…Now, look at our country today. Duterte is gone, and the drug problem is coming back. Crime is rising again. So ask yourself: was he really the problem, or was he simply the one brave enough to fix it?)
In his March 17 posts on FB and Instagram, De Castro shared screenshots of the circulating quote attributed to him, marking them as “fake.” At that time, media outlets fact-checked several posts carrying De Castro’s alleged remark.
The counterfeit “Kabayan” quote began spreading online shortly after Duterte was arrested and sent to the International Criminal Court to face charges of committing crimes against humanity in connection with drug-related killings in the Philippines during his administration.
De Castro’s supposed message of support for the former president is not the only post that has reemerged. Since Duterte’s arrest, similar claims resurfaced in September and October, which have been fact-checked by ABS-CBN and VERA Files, respectively.
The Filipino-translated version of the fraudulent statement has continued to circulate on social media this November, as the ICC Appeals Chamber’s decision on Duterte’s appeal for interim release approaches. The ruling is set to be delivered in an open court and livestreamed online on Nov. 28.
First published by FB page Dric TV (created on Oct. 4, 2023 as Ms, Talk and changed its name four times), the bogus quote has garnered 143,000 reactions, 12,900 comments and 26,000 shares as of writing. The recent copy that VERA Files has tracked was posted as a video reel by an FB user, which so far received 48,300 reactions, 4,000 comments and 10,000 shares. Other copies have also been posted on X (formerly Twitter) and TikTok.
