A graphic circulating online claims Sen. Robinhood Padilla, a known ally of the Duterte family, has made a sexual remark on Vice President Sara Duterte. This is fake.
The official FB page of Nightline News, a news program of Sonshine Media Network International, whose logo was used in the news card, has disowned it in a March 10 advisory.
A reader sent the bogus graphic to the VERA Files Misinformation Tip Line to check the claim’s veracity.
VERA Files found the earliest copy of the quote card, which was published on March 9 by a user on FB, Instagram and Threads, saying:
“I would be a hypocrite kung di ko aaminin na minsan nal*l*bugan din ako kay Madam VP Inday Sara. Bakla ka kung hindi ka attracted sa beauty and brains tulad ni VP. Yun nga lang tulad ni Cong. Suntay hanggang imagination lang tayo (I would be a hypocrite if I won’t admit that I sometimes get turned on by Madam VP Inday Sara. You must be gay if you’re not attracted to beauty and brains like the VP. But like Cong. Suntay, we can only admire her in our imagination)
Sen. Robinhood Padilla
March 6, 2026″
On March 10, an FB user posted a reel featuring the graphic while criticizing the senator’s alleged remark about the vice president. Another user reposted the news card multiple times on his personal account and four FB groups.
Yet another user republished the quote attributed to Padilla using a graphic with a different design and layout on March 11.
In a statement sent to VERA Files on March 11, Padilla’s camp categorically said the circulating graphic is “fake news,” adding that the senator “will never make such remarks as [he] holds the vice president and all other women with deep respect.”
A cursory search of the entire quote on Google and a quick review of Padilla’s official FB pages show no records or posts containing the sexual remark on the vice president. No media organization has reported on it either.
On March 10, SMNI news program Nightline News published an official disclaimer on its FB page, clarifying that the material carrying the spurious statement “did not originate from our office and does not reflect our official statements or positions.”
“Any misuse, misrepresentation, or unauthorized use of our logo and official social media materials constitutes a violation and may lead to legal action by SMNI News,” the advisory added, which another SMNI news program, Newsblast, also shared.
A reverse image search shows that the original news card was published by Nightline News on Feb. 20, reporting that Padilla said he was ready to serve as campaign manager for Duterte in her presidential bid in the 2028 national election.
The fraudulent quote card surfaced after Quezon City Rep. Bong Suntay drew backlash for saying he had a sexual fantasy about actress-host Anne Curtis while defending Duterte’s “imagined” kill threat against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. during the March 3 impeachment proceedings against the vice president at the House of Representatives.
VERA Files has previously debunked other disinformation related to Padilla.
The copies of the fake graphic published by three users on FB have so far collectively garnered 2,417 reactions; 1,587 comments; and 126 shares. The video bearing the bogus quote card posted by page Pbbm Reaction Tv (created on Mar. 25, 2023) has received 577 reactions; 148 comments; 147 shares; and 13,000 views as of writing.
