Robredo sounds alarm over Chinese interference in Philippine politics

Vice President Leni Robredo on Sunday sounded the alarm over Chinese interference in the domestic affairs of the Philippines through social media.

“Anong ginagawa ng China sa domestic affairs natin? Ito, kailangan tayo dito matakot. Kasi bakit? Ano ang interes ninyo sa eleksyon… So ito, tingin ko, nakakatakot ito kasi may kinalaman ito sa soberanya natin,” she said in her weekly radio show.

Facebook earlier said it took down several pages and accounts for coordinated inauthentic behavior. 

One network of accounts was traced back to Fujian, China, with trolls posting about the South China Sea and the Philippines’ 2022 presidential election, among other local issues.

“Anong interes ng foreign body… na makialam at manira, manira ng mga tao dito sa atin? Ako, ang fake news, kahit anong porma, fake news iyon—masama. Pero lalo siyang sumasama dahil niluluto siya, niluluto siya sa ibang bansa,” Robredo said.

The Vice President also lamented the proliferation of fake news on social media, which she said has been “playing” with Filipinos’ psyche since 2016.

While Robredo said Facebook’s actions on the fake accounts came too late, she expressed hope that it will continue to take down trolls.

She also called on the public to be more discerning when using social media.

“Kapag kasinungalingan, kapag paulit-ulit mong sinasabi ang kasinungalingan, naniniwala ang tao. At kina-capitalize nila iyon,” she said.

“Alam nilang—alam nilang mangyayari iyon, kaya kina-capitalize nila. Pero sana huwag naman. Kasi kawawa—kawawa iyong mga kababayan natin na naniniwala. Kasi kung tama naman iyong sasabihin, bakit kailangan fake account pa?” Robredo added. — BM, GMA News