Fact-checked by: Jovelyn Cullado
Red Bullets:
Claim: COMELEC schemed against retired Lt. Gen. Antonio Parlade Jr. when he failed to secure a spot on the list of presidential candidates for the 2022 Elections.Instead of him, the commission prioritized lesser known candidate Maria Aurora Marcos, and Leni Robredo who hails from Bicol like Parlade.
Rating: Partly False (Misleading)
The truth: Retired Lt. Gen. Antonio Parlade Jr. substituted Antonio Valdes as the presidential candidate of Katipunan ng Demokratikong Pilipino (KDP). Valdes was listed by COMELEC as an independent candidate, while Maria Aurora Marcos has met the qualifications to run as presidential candidate.
Why fact-check: As the election draws near, misleading content such as this case affects the credibility of established institutions and the identity of aspiring presidents. The connection between claims are framed to achieve a desired end which in this case-distrust in established institutions like COMELEC and a threat in the process of the upcoming 2022 Election. Posts containing the same claim surfaced in various social media pages and in different forms such as videos and text. The post currently has 504 reactions, 72 comments, and 57 shares.
Red Totality:
On Dec. 27, 2021, Facebook page Matang Agila published a poster bearing a quote attributed to retired Lt.Gen. Antonio Parlade Jr. accompanied by a caption noting that the Commission on Election (COMELEC) removed the controversial figure from the list of presidential candidates in favor of an unknown Marcos candidate and to provide undue advantage to Leni Robredo.
Several posts containing the same misleading claim have surfaced in various social media pages and in different forms such as videos and text. As of Jan. 18, the post has gained 505 reactions, 72 comments, and 57 shares.
The poster, which is a publication material from Sonshine Media Network International (SMNI) that is owned by controversial evangelist Apollo Quiboloy, attributed the following quote from Parlade Jr.:
"What we know is that certain candidates in previous elections paid billions of pesos in order to ensure their victory. Some paid hefty sums in order for them to have their party get accredited. Still, some have to pay the Comelec officials in order for their electoral protests to be resolved. In all of these issues, money changed hands. And one of these days I will write about my personal experience with our party, the KDP.
With this situation we must ask the question — who among our politicians now, either national or local, have won the contest honestly?"
The claim of the post is partly false, specifically misleading.
It was published four days after the Commission on Election released a tentative list of presidential candidates, where Parlade was not included. While he was left out, a certain Maria Aurora Marcos was listed.
Parlade filed his certificate of candidacy (COC) on Nov. 15, 2021. Parlade substituted Katipunan ng Demokratikong Pilipino’s (KDP) Antonio Valdes, who withdrew his COC on Nov.13. Albeit being KDP's bet, Valdes was listed as an independent candidate in COMELEC, which in turn makes Parlade ineligible for substitution, according to COMELEC rules, and reiterated by the commission’s spokesperson James Jimenez in a tweet.
This decision fueled claims that Parlade’s exclusion was COMELEC’s way of allowing Robredo to monopolize Bicolano’s votes. The claim is unproven.
On the account of Parlade's quotation, he indeed said it in his Manila Times column it –"Is there a Comelec Mafia?"-- published on Dec. 10, 2021. It predates the list of presidential candidates. Thus, while Parlade assailed COMELEC officials of receiving bribe money in the column, the post misleads the public by implying that the quote was somehow in reaction to the poll body’s decision and in support of the Matang Agila post’s claim.
The claim that Maria Aurora Marcos should have been removed from the list of candidates on the grounds of not being widely recognized is also misleading. No section in Article VII of the 1987 Constitution, which pertains to the executive branch particularly presidents and vice presidents, has mentioned that popularity or name must be established first before running for presidency. Section 2 of the said article states the following:
“Section 2. No person may be elected President unless he is a natural-born citizen of the Philippines, a registered voter, able to read and write, at least forty years of age on the day of the election, and a resident of the Philippines for at least ten years immediately preceding such election.”
Based on the recent tentative list released by the COMELEC, Maria Aurora Marcos was excluded from the list of presidential candidates and the final list has yet to be announced by the commission.
References:
Official Gazette, "The Executive Branch,"
Rappler, "#PHVote Guides: When can candidates be substituted?," September 17, 2021
The Manila Times, "Is there a Comelec mafia?," December 10, 2021
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