A pro-Marcos Facebook (FB) page posted a doctored 2018 Manila Bulletin quote card featuring former Sen. Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., days before the Supreme Court was expected to hand down its preliminary decision on the vice-presidential electoral protest.
Facebook page The Unbeatable Loyalist Around the World posted on Oct. 11 a manipulated infographic of Marcos with a caption describing him a “man of principle” and the “Real Vice President BBM.”
Marcos Jr., in the image, was portrayed as saying: “I would prefer to fail with honor than win by cheating.”
This is fake.
A reverse image search shows the original version of the quote card was published by Manila Bulletin on Aug. 15, 2018. The quote in the infographic was Marcos Jr.’s response to President Rodrigo Duterte’s pronouncement of resignation if he wins his electoral protest against Vice President Ma. Leonor “Leni” Robredo.
The Manila Bulletin quote card was altered — an image bearing a famous quote found on social media site Pinterest was overlaid on the text part of the original infographic.
This saying is a paraphrased version of the 94th line in the ancient Greek tragedy “Philoctetes,” written by playwright Sophocles in 409 B.C.
The manipulated quote card surfaced days before the Supreme Court (SC), sitting as the Presidential Electoral Tribunal, was expected to come out with its initial decision on the vote recount in the electoral protest filed by Marcos against Robredo.
On Oct. 15, the High Court merely announced the release of the report on the “revision and appreciation of ballots in the three pilot provinces” for Marcos’ and Robredo’s camp to comment on.
(Editor’s Note: VERA Files has partnered with Facebook to fight the spread of disinformation. Find out more about this partnership and our methodology.)
