After a survey showed Sen. Raffy Tulfo holding a narrow lead as the top presidential contender for the 2028 national election, a video on YouTube revived the spurious claim that the lawmaker has been expelled from the Senate.
On April 15, a YouTube channel recirculated the false claim in a video that bore the headline:
“KAKAPASOK LANG Grabe to! Walang Nagawa si Raffy Tulfo sa Matinding Utos ni Cong Marcoleta at Zubiri
(Just in, this is serious! Raffy Tulfo can’t do anything against the grave order of [SAGIP Party-list Rep. Rodante] Marcoleta and [Senate President Juan Miguel] Zubiri”
The following text can also be read on the video’s thumbnail:
“TANGGAL SA PWESTO. MARCOLETA WINASAK SI TULFO, IYAK (Removed from office. Marcoleta crushed Tulfo)”
The video is clickbait. It provides no evidence to support the claim in its headline and only mentions Marcoleta’s criticism against Tulfo saying the senator is a “bully” and “all talk, no action.”
According to the 1987 Constitution, an erring lawmaker of Congress can only be suspended or expelled with the concurrence of two-thirds of all the members of their chamber, either the House of Representatives or the Senate.
VERA Files Fact Check has debunked several videos claiming the same false statement on Tulfo’s alleged expulsion. (Read VERA FILES FACT CHECK: Tulfo NOT removed as senator)
Two weeks before this false claim reemerged on social media, pollster Pulse Asia published a survey conducted from March 6 to 10 showing that 35 percent of their respondents preferred Tulfo for the 2028 presidency, beating Vice President Sara Duterte by one point.
YouTube channel PINAS NEWS INSIDER (created on Dec. 26, 2015) published the video, garnering over 224,000 views and 6,600 online interactions.
Have you seen any dubious claims, photos, memes, or online posts that you want us to verify? Fill out this reader request form or send it to VERA, the truth bot on Viber.
(Editor’s Note: VERA Files has partnered with Facebook to fight the spread of disinformation. Find out more about this partnership and our methodology.)
