CLAIM: President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr and Sen. Imee Marcos gave out several boxes filled with assorted relief goods for victims of Severe Tropical Storm Paeng.
These boxes were filled with apples, oranges, Gardenia bread, Bear Brand powdered milk and chocolate drinks, among others.
There are also cases brimming with bananas, pineapples, grapes, apples, oranges and lemons.
A Facebook user thanked the president and the lawmaker for the relief goods, which he claimed were genuine.
“TO ANG TUNAY NA RELIEF GOODS!!! Thank you Pres. Bongbong Marcos, Senator Imee R. Marcos #PaengPH,” he wrote on Tuesday.
The post was also accompanied by pictures of Imee and some officials.
RATING: The relief goods in the photos did not come from the Marcoses and were not for “Paeng’s” victims. This is false.
Facts
A reverse image Google search of the relief goods revealed that these were given out by former Gapan City mayor Emeng Pascual on different occasions last year.
The picture showing relief goods with bread was given to his constituents infected with COVID-19 in April 2021.
Pascual shared that it was given to them through their frontline workers on Holy Thursday.
“Kahit mahal na araw, walang pahinga ang ating mga frontliners, mahatiran lang ng ayuda ang mga tao sa Gapan. Aalagaan at tutulungan natin ang mga nangangailngan, lalo na sa panahon ng pandemya,” he wrote on April 1, 2021.
Meanwhile, the other picture on the Facebook post credited to the Marcoses was given by Pascual to the frontliners in their area on April 9, 2021.
“Ngayon ay Araw ng Kagitingan, huwag natin kalimutan ang mga bayani na nagbuwis ng buhay para sa ating bansa,” he wrote before.
“Mas lalong ‘wag natin kakalimutan ang mga bagong bayani na mga FRONTLINERS na bagong giyera na kinakaharap natin. Araw araw nasa panganib ang kanilang buhay para makapaglingkod sa taong bayan,” Pascual added.
The president, meanwhile, led the relief goods distribution of the Department of Social Welfare and Development to “Paeng’s” victims in Cavite on October 31.
Imee does not have any recent pictures of her giving out relief packs but she vowed to help victims of the storm and the 6.4 magnitude earthquake in Abra.
“On our part, we promise to help our people retrieve their loved ones, restore their health and well-being, repair their homes and recover their livelihoods,” she said in a statement before.
Why it matters
The Facebook post alleging that the Marcoses gave out assorted relief goods continues to be shared on the social networking platform.
Bongbong and Imee continued to garner praise for supposedly giving out the boxes and cases to the storm victims despite the falsehoods in the post — it was not given by them, one was given to COVID-19 patients and the other, to frontliners.
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This story is part of the Philippine Fact-check Incubator, an Internews initiative to build the fact-checking capacity of news organizations in the Philippines and encourage participation in global fact-checking efforts.
Interaksyon is part of #FactsFirstPH, a multi-sectoral initiative promoting truth in public space and demanding accountability for falsehoods. For those interested to join the initiative, email [email protected]
Interaksyon is also a founding partner of Tsek.ph, a collaborative fact-checking project for the 2022 Philippine elections. It is an initiative of academe, civil society groups and media to counter disinformation and provide the public with verified information.
