At least two Facebook pages are circulating a post claiming that President Ferdinand Marcos was rushed to the hospital as the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee resumed hearings on the controversial flood control projects. This is not true.
The image in the viral post is a screenshot from a video generated using artificial intelligence that was previously debunked by VERA Files Fact Check months before this latest wave of disinformation.
Published on June 4, the clickbait post redirects users to an e-commerce affiliate site. It bears the caption:
“PBBM sinugod SA hospital dahil sinimulan ang blue ribbon hearing sa S… See more
(PBBM rushed to the hospital as the Blue Ribbon hearing on S… See more).”
Two opposing factions of the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee held separate hearings on June 4 and 8, amid an intense leadership dispute. However, there is no credible report that the President was rushed to a hospital on either date.
The post appears to exploit the ongoing rift and revive speculation about the President’s health although it has been months since Marcos denied the rumors.
The new Senate Blue Ribbon Committee Chairman Sen. Erwin Tulfo had canceled the June 4 hearing on the scam involving flood projects. However, former Senate president Alan Peter Cayetano, who had been replaced by acting President Sherwin Gatchalian on June 3, insisted on pushing through with it although the hearing was not included in the chamber’s official record.
The newly-elected Senate leadership described the hearing as an “unofficial and unauthorized gathering,” calling it “a naked grab for power dressed up as ‘inquiry’ and ‘oversight’.'”
On June 8, Tulfo held another hearing on flood control corruption, which was not attended by the 18 alleged former marines who had been present in the June 4 event.
Clickbait posts use high-profile issues, in this case, the Senate’s flood control investigation, to entice netizens and direct them to affiliate sites.
The erroneous post published by the FB pages Cong. Kiko Barzaga Supporters (created Sept. 8, 2025) and SaklaY (June 27, 2017) collectively garnered 1,309 reactions; 403 comments; and 47 shares.
