Andanar justifies 'DDS bloggers' at ASEAN: They helped promote event

The bloggers who were accredited to cover the ASEAN events were there to help promote the meetings, Presidential Communications Operations Office Secretary Martin Andanar said on Monday, after critics questioned why bloggers were given access to the international event.

In a radio interview, Andanar explained why lawyer Bruce Rivera, an avid supporter of President Rodrigo Duterte, was accredited to cover the ASEAN Ministerial Meetings and related events as “DDS” media. He said that it was Rivera himself who wrote DDS as his media entity.

“Nagkataon na Atty. Bruce Rivera, nilagay niya DDS,” he said.

“Well, si Atty. Bruce kasi is really a follower of President - a supporter. At ang blogs pa ni Atty. Bruce ay pangalan niya. Atty. Bruce din ang blog. So he decided to put DDS, eh siyempre doon naman sa NOC [National Organizing Committee] ay wala namang malice na, ‘Ito ang inilagay mo, ‘di ito na ang ilalagay natin,’” he added. 

In a Facebook post on Saturday, Rivera claimed that DDS is the “biggest network in the Philippines” after foreign media asked him what it meant. He also attached a photo of his ASEAN media ID.

The acronym DDS had been used to denote the alleged Davao Death Squad, even as the President's supporters online have co-opted it to mean "Diehard Duterte Supporters."

Andanar said the registration for the media accreditation was open for all, but only 14 bloggers were approved by ASEAN-NOC, which reviewed every applicant’s supporting documents and other requirements.

He also said that not all accredited bloggers were tagged as “DDS.”

“Hindi naman lahat ng bloggers na nandito ngayon ay DDS. Merong mga supporters, meron ding mga bloggers talaga na independent na walang sinusuportahan, objective, wala silang—iyong iba na it’s just for fun,” he said.

“All of these bloggers are actually volunteers to promote the ASEAN event in our country. So para sa akin, iyon ang pinakamahalaga,” he added. —JST, GMA News