Robredo doubts ‘Bikoy’s’ existence amid video sharer’s arrest

Vice President Leni Robredo has raised doubts as to whether “Bikoy”—the unidentified man in serialized videos claiming to be a former member of a drug syndicate who accuses members of President Rodrigo Duterte’s family of receiving drug money—really exists.

Robredo made the position in light of the arrest of  Rodel Jayme whom Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra identified as the one who uploaded “Totoong Narcolist” videos on his website dubbed as metrobalita.net.

“Ang naaresto ay hindi si Bikoy kundi ‘yung nag-upload nung videos. Ako, marami kasing tanong: una, mayroon ba talagang Bikoy? Ang gusto kong sabihin, si Bikoy ba tunay na tao?” Robredo, chairperson of the Liberal Party, said in a chance interview in Sorsogon on Thursday.

Robredo said that if Bikoy really exists, authorities should have put him under the Witness Protection Program and long probed his allegations.

“Kasi kung tunay na tao, parang whistleblower siya. Hindi ba dapat bigyan ng proteksyon para malaman kung totoo o hindi ang sinasabi? Kasi wala naman tayong way of knowing kung totoo o hindi [ang sinabi niya agad-agad]. Bakit hindi tingnan kung totoo [ang mga bintang],” Robredo said.

“Kasi ano lang naman eh, madali naman i-check iyon. Kung hindi totoo, eh ‘di nagsisinungaling iyong Bikoy,” she added.

Robredo then appealed to authorities to arrest all individuals purveying falsehoods, regardless of political affiliation.

“Malaking bagay iyong [pag-aresto kay Bikoy] pero sana, sana iyong lahat na nag-uupload ng mga fake na news, sana inaaresto rin. Kasi halimbawa, ako, biktima ako since 2016 ng maraming fake [news]. Pero ang masama nito kasi iyong ibang gumagawa ng fake news, parang… parang, sinusuwelduhan pa ng pamahalaan,” Robredo said.

“Lahat na nagsasabi ng kasinungalingan, eh ‘di arestuhin, panagutin. Halimbawa, itong nag-upload nitong Bikoy, kung nagsisi—kung kasinungalingan iyong ina-upload niya, dapat papanagutin, kasuhan. But in the same manner, huwag pumili. Iyong lahat na gaya ni Bikoy na kasinungalingan iyong pino-post o ina-upload, papanagutin [dapat],” she added. — RSJ, GMA News