MANILA – The Commission on Elections (Comelec) dismissed as fake news the alleged vote-buying activities at a Hong Kong rally attended by former president Rodrigo Duterte and daughter Vice President Sara Duterte-Carpio.
According to Comelec chairman George Garcia, there is no verified information that vote-buying activities were conducted during the rally held at the Southorn Stadium in Wan Chai.
“‘Yan po ay fake news, ‘yan ay misinformation. Huwag kaagad natin paniniwalaan ‘yung mga nakalagay sa social media,” Garcia said in a interview with TeleRadyo Serbisyo on Tuesday.
“Sa sobrang media na nandun sa Hong Kong, lalo na ‘yung local media natin, imposible naman po na hindi ‘yan ma-mo-monitor o hindi ‘yan makikita. Imposible din na walang magsasabi na kami ay in-offer-ran ng 200 Hong Kong dollars,” he added.
Earlier social media posts alleged that overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) attending the campaign rally were offered financial incentives to support senatorial candidates endorsed by the former president.
Garcia noted that similar allegations of vote-buying have emerged in Quezon City and Baguio; however, these claims remain unverified, as no individuals have come forward to confirm that they received money in exchange for their votes.
“Ito po talaga yung panahon na tataas ang bilang ng mga misinformation, disinformation at fake news sa ating social media. Maging mapagmatyag tayo, mag-verify at mag-check. Laging mag-fact-checking,” he said.
“Sa kasalukuyan, bakit kami gagawa ng aksyon. Napaka-unfair naman sa mga maakusahan,” Garcia added.
The Comelec chief also said that he doubts vote-buying will be conducted this early in the campaign, months before the actual election.
“Useless ang pamimili ng boto, makakalimutan kaagad ng botante. Ang pamimili ng boto gamit ang G-Cash, PayMaya at iba pang e-wallet ay mga two to three days before the election,” Garcia said./PN
