Multiple social media posts resurfaced in July a four-year-old statement made by Michael V. about President Rodrigo Duterte. The comedian, also known as “Bitoy,” himself clarified it was a remark made after the 2016 election.
A quote card bearing a watermark from Twitter account The Real DDS Confessions (@DDSConfessions_) crossed over to Facebook (FB) and has been shared by personal accounts in public groups. It was from a post made by Bitoy on May 16, 2016 where he uploaded a sketch of the then newly-elected president and “encouraged people to accept and respect the election results.”
The July 25 graphic was published with a caption that made it appear the statement was recent: “Michael V may pasabog para sa mga nega #DDSConfessions #DutertePaRin (Michael V has something explosive for ‘negative’ people #DDSConfessions #DuterteStill).”
The Real DDS Confessions describes itself as “pro-DDS,” a term used for hardcore supporters of President Duterte. It was created in June 2020.
Bitoy himself owned the statement but clarified that it is not a recent one.
In an Instagram post on July 30, he said the quote was posted in May 2016 as it was aligned with the Dapat Tama election advocacy campaign he did with GMA Network, his home studio. Using the hashtag “fake news,” he warned against the use of the statement as “campaign material”.
Bitoy also tweeted the existence of a similar misleading graphic which contained the phrase “I stand with the president.” He also called it “fake news.” The quote card mentioned the FB page and group Sara Du30 supporters 2022 in its lower right corner.
At least four posts containing the misleading quote card and other similar iterations gained almost 70,000 shares on FB alone. One post reached over 64,000 shares.
The popular comedian made news more than two weeks ago when he announced on his Youtube vlog #BitoyStory 29: “POSITIVE” that he had contracted the coronavirus.
Shortly after, he fell victim to a death hoax that circulated on social media. He debunked the hoax.
(Editor’s Note: VERA Files has partnered with Facebook to fight the spread of disinformation. Find out more about this partnership and our methodology.)
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