A netizen published Oct. 19 a misleading online post that passes off several big-ticket infrastructure projects as initiatives of President Rodrigo Duterte.
Bearing the caption, “President Duterte 10 Mega project under the build build build program. You will never see this in the news,” the online post carried a 3-minute video narrated by a computer-generated voice, showing 10 “mega projects” supposedly under the Duterte administration’s Build, Build, Build program.
The Build, Build, Build program is the Duterte administration’s P9 trillion undertaking designed to “fast-track” 75 projects it believes would “boost economic growth” by making “markets and business opportunities” more accessible, according to the National Economic Development Authority.
While all 10 projects named in the online post are indeed under the program, only three were initiated by the Duterte administration, according to information listed on the official Build, Build, Build website. These are the Philippine National Railways (PNR) North 2 project which began on Nov. 30, 2016, the Subic-Clark Railway Project that began Oct. 20, 2016, and the Unified Common Station project, which started Feb. 1, 2017.
The seven other projects all began under the term of Duterte’s predecessor, former president Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III:
- Mega Manila Subway which began March 1, 2015
- Mindanao Railway: Tagum-Davao City-Digos Segment on Oct. 28, 2015
- NLEX-SLEX Connector Road on May 6, 2010
- Bonifacio Global City to Ortigas Road Link Project on May 1, 2012
- PNR North 1 on June 12, 2013
- PNR South Commuter on Feb. 12, 2014, and
- PNR South Long Haul on Feb. 12, 2014.
The report also falsely claims that the infrastructure projects have gone unreported by mainstream media. Several media outfits, including ABS-CBN News online, Business World, Manila Bulletin and Sun Star, have published a number of reports that track the progress of the projects.
The misleading story could have reached more than 1.4 million people. It surfaced about a week after Budget Secretary Benjamin Diokno said the infrastructure program is set to bring about 7% annual economic growth to the country over the next decade.
A large chunk of traffic to the online post came from the pages PRESIDENT RODY DUTERTE -FEDERAL MOVEMENT INTERNATIONAL, Atty Glenn Chong Supporters Group, and OFW4DU30 Global Movement Association and Cooperation International.
It is the second misleading post on Duterte’s build build build program that VERA Files has tracked in just one month.
(Editor’s Note: VERA Files has partnered with Facebook to fight the spread of disinformation. Find out more about this partnership and our methodology.)
