Panel to unmask spreaders of fake news vs. Quad Comm
The House of Representatives will form a special committee to investigate vloggers allegedly under the payroll of illegal POGOs who have been spreading disinformation against the Quad Committee, Surigao del Norte Rep. Robert Ace Barbers said Sunday.
Barbers, lead chairman of the Quad Comm, said banned POGOs still operating in the country are believed to be bankrolling these vloggers.
“There is a need for a regulatory framework so that these vloggers do not abuse their influence,” he told dzBB in an interview.
He said a Tri Committee will be formed to conduct the probe and work on passing legislation that will prevent vloggers and influencers from spreading disinformation and misinformation.
The lawmaker said criticisms are welcome and even protected by the Constitution as long as these are “anchored on the discharge of our official duties and functions.”
In November, Barbers requested the National Bureau of Investigation to identify and pursue the unnamed vloggers who he accused of being paid to “malign and spread lies” about the Quad Comm.
“The ultimate goal of the trolls is to create chaos and disorder by sowing false information, confusion, fear and slander their subjects. We must not let them win. Law and order must be preserved to ensure peace and stability in society,” Barbers said in his privilege speech last month.
In his letter to the NBI, Barbers complained to bureau director Jaime Santiago that the deliberate disinformation drive by the seemingly organized vloggers not only damages the integrity of public service but also fosters an environment of confusion, distrust and deception.
He asked Santiago to help Quad Comm unmask the persons or groups responsible for creating and posting damaging and misleading vlogs, and secure and preserve all digital evidence related to the vlog, including metadata, upload details, and related activity logs.
The lawmaker also submitted pieces of evidence of some malicious vlogs sourced from various social media platforms, including a derogatory vlog that originated from his province and was picked up by Manila-based mercenary vloggers, linking him and his brother, Surigao del Norte Gov. Lyndon Barbers to illegal drugs.
“It is very obvious that these are well-organized and paid vloggers who just wanted to destroy my name, my brother’s and the Quad Comm members. Some said these came from paid groups. Maybe, their POGO employers and the drug lords are getting hurt with the Quad Comm investigations,” he said.
