A Facebook post claims that Cagayan de Oro Rep. Lordan Suan blames former president Rodrigo Duterte’s shoot-to-kill culture for the surge of school shooting incidents. This is false.
The post published on Aug. 18 contains a graphic that features Duterte on his first appearance at the International Criminal Court detention center in The Hague for his crimes against humanity case, alongside Suan, and a blurred photo of a student. The fabricated graphic contains the following text:
“REP. SUAN, GIBASOL SI KANHI PRESIDENTE DUTERTE SA “SHOOT-TO-KILL” NGA MINDSET SA MGA KABATAN-ONAN. Gibasol ni Rep. Lordan Suan si kanhi Presidente Rodrigo Duterte tungod sa giingong “shoot-to-kill” nga pamaagi nga nakaimpluwensya kuno sa pipila ka kabatan-onan karon.
(REP. SUAN BLAMES FORMER PRESIDENT DUTERTE FOR “SHOOT-TO-KILL” MINDSET AMONG YOUTH
Rep. Lordan Suan blamed former President Rodrigo Duterte for the alleged “shoot-to-kill” method that allegedly influenced some youths now).”
The legislator made no statement blaming Duterte for influencing the recent uptick of gun violence among the youth.
On Aug. 19, a day after the false claim was made, lawyer Lorna Kapunan said in an online press briefing that Duterte’s extrajudicial killings have allowed a culture of violence to persist.
Kapunan also blamed Vice President Sara Duterte, who made past remarks about hiring an assassin for P5,000 if her husband cheats, for “contributing to the problem” with her rhetoric. “The values of our leaders, that is what our youth sees […]. It is now a culture of violence, and that is why we will come back to the impeachment,” Kapunan said.
Attached to the quote card is a logo of a so-called Gold Star Daily that can be traced to a public Facebook group by Mindanao Gold Star, a Mindanao-based media organization.
The false claim surfaced the same day a shooting incident occurred inside the premises of Ateneo de Zamboanga University, where an alleged Grade 8 suspect opened fire, which left him and one of his schoolmates dead.
Suan had been targeted by the same Facebook page that has been circulating false information amid the ongoing Senate impeachment trial of Duterte, in which the lawmaker serves as a member of the House prosecution panel.
Posted by Birada Kagay-an (created January 2025), which has over 11,000 followers, the post has so far garnered 3,400 reactions, 1,000 comments, and 277 shares.
