A viral Facebook reel claiming that Vice President Sara Duterte was spotted at the residence of Impeachment Court Presiding Officer Francis “Chiz” Escudero has gone viral. This claim is false.
On Oct. 3, the reel carried the caption:
“Totoo ba ito ??? Opppss parang iba na ito kapag totoo???chizzzzzz ano to??? #fbreels #followers #highlight
(Is this true??? Opppss this looks suspicious, if true true???chizzzzzz what is
this??? #fbreels #followers #highlight)”
The graphic within the video bears a photo of Escudero and Duterte, along with the following text:
“SARAH DUTERTE WAS SPOTTED AT CHIZ ESCUDERO’S HOUSE!!… HOW TRUE
IS THIS NEWS MGA KABABAYAN!!!… IF THIS IS TRUE, SOMETHING FISHY IS
BEING COOKED..
There is no news report from any legitimate media outlet or verified sightings of the vice president at Escudero’s house. Neither is there a confirmation of any meeting between the two or a scheduled visit of Duterte during her ongoing impeachment trial.
A meeting between senator-judges, especially the presiding officer outside of official trial proceedings, would be a violation of trial ethics. Under the Senate Rules of Procedure on Impeachment Trials (Rule XVIII), the respondent is prohibited from meeting with senator-judges and the presiding officer outside of official trial proceedings.
As of writing, the trial is on Day 33, with the articles on ill-gotten wealth being tackled during the impeachment proceedings.
The reel posted by an FB user so far garnered 1,500 likes; 703 comments; and 553 shares.
