The House Tri-Committee cited in contempt several bloggers who snubbed its fourth hearing on Tuesday into the alarming prevalence of false information, despite being repeatedly summoned by the panel through show-cause orders and subpoenas.
The social media personalities subject to detention in the premises of the House of Representatives include former anti-insurgency task force spokesperson Lorraine Badoy-Partosa, her then co-host in a Sonshine Media Network International program, Jeffrey "Ka Eric" Celiz, and blogger Allan Troy “Sass” Rogando Sasot.
Abang Lingkod Rep. Stephen Paduano moved to cite them in contempt, alleging that they refused to “answer summons without legal excuse," in violation of Section 11(A) of the House rules.
“Mr. Jeffrey Celiz, Ms. Badoy, and Ms. Sasot violate section 11 paragraph A, may I respectfully move that the three mentioned names be detained until the committee hearing [is] terminated and be detained in the premises of the House,” Paduano said.
Badoy, Celiz, and Sasot were reportedly invited since the panel launched the probe in February, yet they were still no-shows during the fourth investigation. According to information obtained by the committee, the three were reportedly out of the country — Badoy in Hong Kong and Sasot said to be currently residing in Beijing, China.
During the previous hearing, Sasot attempted to testify via Zoom. However, the committee denied her access, asserting it was exclusively for House members joining the congressional inquiry.
The three were part of the countless vloggers summoned by the committee to explain their role in the “fake news” peddling. Other personalities, including former press secretary and lawyer Trixie Cruz-Angeles, had already appeared before lawmakers after skipping the first two hearings.
Mark Lopez was also cited in contempt for skipping the hearing. He will be detained for ten days in the House of Representatives.
Paduano alleged that Lopez breached Section 11 Paragraph F of the internal rules on undue interference in congressional inquiries, citing portions of Lopez’s blog, saying it sought to discredit the panel.
“It was blatantly used that there was a concerted effort to humiliate us and bring us down on our knees,” Paduano said, reading Lopez’s post on Facebook. “Even mainstream media are gleefully celebrating and pouncing on our forced breakdown and takedown in Tri-Comm hearing.”
Paduano lamented that Lopez issued such a statement, notwithstanding being warned by the committee during the previous hearing.
The committee launched the probe on 4 February to address the alarming threat of disinformation and manipulative content online by reviewing loopholes in existing policies and crafting new measures to curb the spread of “fake news.”
Lawmakers have weighed proposals to hold platforms such as tech giant Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, more accountable, asserting that they should have “great responsibility” as the main platform enabling disinformation.
Meta’s Director of Public Policy for Southeast Asia, Dr. Rafael Frankel, told lawmakers that they have proactive measures, including a fact-checking system, in place to curb the spread of false content.
“When it comes to misinformation, we believe that it’s really third parties that are the ones most capable and most appropriate to determine the veracity of information,” he said.
Frankel explained that this system and the fact-checkers can proactively act on their volition or without any action on the part of Meta. He stated that these moderators can flag certain content such as hate speech, inciting to violence, harassment, and terrorism if they violate Meta’s community standards.
Lawmakers themselves have decried being targets of “fake news propagators” and troll farms, which they believed stemmed from the House Quad Committee’s investigation into the Duterte administration’s drug war as well as the criminal activities linked to Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators.
They, however, asserted that responsibility does not rest solely on content creators, but also on the platforms that allow such content to spread.
Hours after being cited in contempt by the House Tri-Committee on Tuesday, Mark Lopez addressed the issue in a radio interview, saying he respects Congress as an institution and intends to appear before the panel.
Lopez explained in Filipino that he does not consider himself a professional vlogger or journalist, but rather a regular citizen using social media to express opinions on current events. He added that his posts, which have gained traction online, are based on news circulating in the public domain.
He clarified that he does not monetize his social media content and does not use platforms like Facebook and X to earn income. Lopez emphasized that his posts are public and transparent, and that he is simply part of the broader public discourse.
Regarding his absence from the fourth hearing, Lopez said he had already appeared before the committee on 18 March and felt he had nothing new to contribute. He also cited a previous apology he issued for a controversial post, which he said had been misunderstood. He admitted that he may have spoken unclearly and acknowledged the miscommunication.
Lopez maintained that he has not violated any laws and expressed his willingness to face the committee again if necessary.