Mocha Uson apologizes for Mayon location gaffe

Presidential Communications Operations Office Assistant Secretary Mocha Uson on Thursday night apologized for mistaking the location of Mayon Volcano for Naga instead of Albay, but called out the attention the "very small issue" received.

She admits her mistake, she said in a video posted on her Facebook page, and later called out those whom she said were "judging" her for it.

"Trending nga po tayo dahil diyan sa nakakatawang issue, ‘yang pagkakamali ko na ang bulkang Mayon ay nasa Naga. Okay, pasensya po, inaamin ko po na nagkakamali ako, okay, pasensya na po, ayan," she said.

"Nakakatawa, napakaliit na issue, ginagawang headline, ginagawang national news, trending, pero pagdating sa Dengvaxia, tahimik kayo, 'di ba, tapos pagdating sa pagkamatay ni Atio Castillo diyan sa UST, tahimik din kayo," she also said.

Uson was referring to Horacio Castillo III, a law student at the University of Santo Tomas, who died after undergoing violent fraternity initiation rites.

"Pero 'yung simpleng pagkakamali ko na hindi naman maapektuhan ang ekonomiya ng Pilipinas, ang seguridad ng bansa natin, grabe kayo kung mapanghusga," she added.

Earlier, Uson wrongly stated that the Mayon was in Naga, Camarines Sur in a trending video where she slammed her critics for allegedly playing up the issue of her receiving an award from the alumni group of her alma mater, the University of Santo Tomas (UST).

She also said in the earlier video that the media should focus its coverage on more pressing issues, like the dengue vaccine Dengvaxia issue and the alleged bribery of Senator Franklin Drilon by alleged pork barrel scam mastermind Janet Lim-Napoles.

Uson, in another video, also said critics made such a fuss about her mistake.

"Piyesta na naman ang mga DISENTE/DILAWAN dahil sa pagkakamali na naman ni Mocha!" she wrote.

"Nanawagan tayo na tulungan ang mga kababayan natin na naapektuhan ng pagsabog ng bulkang Mayon. Ngunit ang pinagtuonan nila ng pansin ay ang pagkakamali ko na nasabi kong NAGA kesa ALBAY. Wala pong excuse sa aking pagkakamali. Pasensya na po. Mas pagbubutihin ko sa susunod," she added.

The communications official, who is now in India as part of President Rodrigo Duterte's delegation to the ASEAN India Summit, has recently been in the news after she received the Thomasian Alumni Award for Government Service from the UST Alumni Association on Sunday.

After facing backlash, she returned the award three days later. Critics have tagged Uson as a purveyor of "fake news," or misinformation. —Nicole-Anne C. Lagrimas/KG, GMA News