Surigao del Norte Rep. Robert Ace Barbers 鈥擣ILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines 鈥� Surigao del Norte Rep. Robert Ace Barbers on Thursday decried attempts by some vloggers to derail the efforts of the House of Representatives鈥� Tripartite Committee (tri-comm) in curbing online fake news and disinformation by filing cases against him and other members of Congress.
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Barbers, whose privilege speech prompted the creation of the tri-comm, said he welcomed the libel case filed against him over his tirade against 鈥渘arco-vloggers鈥� for their disrespect, use of expletives, and other abusive words against some members of the House鈥檚 quad committee and the tri-comm.
The quad comm, made up of the committees on dangerous drugs, public order and safety, human rights, and public accounts, was formed to investigate the link between Philippine offshore gaming operators and extrajudicial killings in the war on drugs, the narcotics trade, and other syndicated crimes.
The tri-comm, composed of the panels on public order and safety, information and communications technology, and public information, was created to draft measures to curb online fake news and disinformation.
READ: 40 socmed users, platform reps invited to House fake news probe
No license to besmirch
鈥淚 always abide by the constitutional provision on free speech and expression, but this cannot and should not be used as a license to besmirch people鈥檚 reputations and throw expletives at their subjects, [and] concoct false or fake narratives and propaganda lines. And I firmly believe that they are not doing it for free,鈥� Barbers said.
He noted that many of the social media influencers and vloggers who filed a petition in the Supreme Court and filed libel cases against him were invited or summoned by the tri-comm but have failed or refused to appear in the inquiry.
鈥极苍别-蝉颈诲别诲鈥�
Several social media personalities filed a petition for certiorari and prohibition in the Supreme Court against tri-comm chairs Dan Fernandez, Tobias Tiangco and Jose Aquino II, as well as Speaker Martin Romualdez, claiming that the invitation in the inquiry violated their right to free speech and expression.
鈥淐ommon sense dictates that many, if not all, of these particular vloggers are mouthing the same propaganda lines [as] their principals,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 fine with me if they criticize us for failing or committing lapses in our job, but to hurl profanities at or be rude to us in a vlog for unclear reasons and deliberately not getting our side, that鈥檚 a different issue.鈥�
Barbers described as cowardice the absence of invited or summoned social media influencers and vloggers in the tri-comm hearings, claiming that it only meant they couldn鈥檛 stand by the statements they were spouting on their platforms.
鈥淚 am asking the public not to immediately believe content creators who cuss at, disparage, and spread lies against their subjects in social media without getting the side of their subjects and whose stories are one-sided,鈥� Barbers said.