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VERA FILES FACT CHECK: Elago quote on lockdown as ‘human rights violation’ FAKE

Kabataan Partylist representative Sarah Elago is once again the subject of a fake quote card where she alleges that lockdowns and curfews are “human rights violations”, hence the need for People Power Revolution.

The legislator has made no such remarks. Shared multiple times on Facebook since April 18, the hoax graphic uses a photo of Elago as backdrop. It is a photo posted on her official FB account in March 2019.

In an FB post, the party-list representative condemned the fake claim and called on the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to investigate.

She clarified that the Kabataan Partylist is not against the lockdown or the enhanced community quarantine because “this is important to slow down the transmission of the virus.”

“For [a lockdown] to be effective in the containment of the virus, mass testing and protection are needed…There should also be a proactive giving of emergency subsidy and other relief efforts as protection for hunger and other diseases,” she added.

The fabricated quote card emerged after Elago released the Kabataan Partylist’s statement in support of the Senate Resolution calling for the immediate resignation of Health Secretary Francisco Duque.

The fake quote has also appeared on an FB page containing the Philippine National Police’s announcements. Another is a pro-Duterte page called Papa Pogi which had close to 300 shares and hundreds of reactions.

(Editor’s Note: VERA Files has partnered with Facebook to fight the spread of disinformation. Find out more about this partnership and our methodology.)