Cesar Chavez, the DZRH station manager, on Tuesday, November 2, apologized on behalf of the radio station for its erroneous report against Vice President Leni Robredo’s caravan in Northern Samar.
In his social media account, Chavez corrected their previous report that followers of the VP were “being paid” to participate in her motorcade last October 30.
“Sa aking pagsisiyasat hanggang sa oras na ito, walang direct quote and gaming reporter mula sa sinuman na nagsabing siya o sila ay ‘hindi nabayaran’ at umano’y ‘binulsa ng mga organizer’ ang bayad na dapat para kanila kapalit ng pakikilahok sa kanilang motorcade,” he explained.
The reporter who delivered the news was also suspended after Chavez found out that there was no such narrative from the caravan attendees.
“Dahil dito, suspended muna sa pagbabalita ang nasabing reporter sa aming himpilan habang sinasagawa pa ang karagdagang pagsisiyasat,” said Chavez.
Mali ang report ng DZRH, paumanhin po VP @lenirobredo at sa iyong mga supporter sa Northern Samar @barrygutierrez3 @dzrhnews pic.twitter.com/ioY8gnocsh
— Cesar Chavez (@sarchavez) November 1, 2021
Robredo’s camp previously denied giving “incentives” to those who attended the motorcade.
The event’s organizers also noted that those who attended had spent their own money, brought their own food, and shouldered any other expenses.
Atty. Barry Gutierrez, Robredo’s spokesperson, shared the statements from the organizers. He also threw some shade at DZRH as he pointed that he “expect a bit more from those in the media profession” knowing that other candidates have hired trolls to spread lies and fake news.
As support for VP Leni grows, we know that the hired trolls of other candidates will work overtime to spread lies and fake news. But we expect a bit more from those in the media profession. Salamat at mabuhay #Kakampink volunteers! #fightfakenews #LeniRobredo2022 #TRoPa2022 pic.twitter.com/cxRJpzmDDY
— Barry Gutierrez (@barrygutierrez3) November 1, 2021
After Chavez cleared the mistake, Gutierrez aired his gratitude to the station manager.
Salamat sa pagsiyasat at sa paumanhin, @sarchavez. Truly appreciate na binasa live on air sa iba't ibang programa ng DZRH ngayong araw ang inyong pahayag na ito. https://t.co/iE8Boz3a4E
— Barry Gutierrez (@barrygutierrez3) November 2, 2021
‘Error’ is not the first time.
This mistake is not new to DZRH.
A netizen recalled that a report from the said radio station on July 17, 2017, claimed that Robredo’s fundraising event was a fail.
Contrary to what DZRH claimed, Robredo’s fundraising actually accumulated P7.5 million.
Itong insidente ng DZRH ay hindi lang nangyari ngayon. [THREAD] #StopDisinformation #HoldTheLine
Exhibit A: FUND RAISING' NI VICE PRES LENI ROBREDO, SUMABLAY! (Reported on July 17, 2017)https://t.co/51stTbRFbL @supernegatrona @KafosoMo @DarnaZaturnnah @ricci_richy @imkerwinking pic.twitter.com/WBF3mvvnSz— Hanash Daily 🍵 #AtinAngWestPhilippineSea (@BIENsays) November 2, 2021
Nakalikom ang mga tagasuporta ng bise presidente ng mahigit P7.5 milyon sa pamamagitan ng online fundraising campaign. #StopDisinformation #HoldTheLine @ToniSpeakEasy @theninaellaine @PinoyAkoBlog https://t.co/5SLLhbCsIehttps://t.co/RbbV0QKqRc pic.twitter.com/shCpaLFFJq
— Hanash Daily 🍵 #AtinAngWestPhilippineSea (@BIENsays) November 2, 2021
The same netizen debunked another misinformation of DZRH. In their report on March 16, 2017, they said that Robredo reported Pres. Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs to the United Nations.
“They told us of the ‘Palit-Ulo Scheme’ which literally means exchange heads where the wife or the husband, or relative of a person in a so-called drug list would be taken if the person himself could not be found.
“Some of those have told us that when there’s a crime, they normally go to the police. Now, they don’t know where to turn to. Our people feel both hopeless and helpless, a state of mind that we must all take seriously.
“This is why the Office of the Vice President supports the Rehabilitation of Drug Dependence. You cannot kill addicts and declare the problem solved. The solution is to design the proper health education and psychosocial interventions to prevent further drug use and help them transition into productive members of society,” stated Robredo in the video
Exhibit B: GIYERA KONTRA DROGA NI PRES. DUTERTE, 'SINUMBONG' NI VP LENI ROBREDO SA UN! (Reported March 16, 2017) #StopDisinformation #HoldTheLine @MyRizalPH @serrano_rene @YOLOinthePHhttps://t.co/8K6xgQIW7L pic.twitter.com/3fpe4lvhcc
— Hanash Daily 🍵 #AtinAngWestPhilippineSea (@BIENsays) November 2, 2021
It turns out, however, was that Robredo’s statement was not in the full context. The headline of DZRH accused the Vice President of reporting Duterte’s war on drugs to the UN via her speech. But her message was about the ‘Palit-Ulo Scheme’ where the suspect’s family members are being arrested if they cannot be found.
https://twitter.com/BIENsays/status/1455377598666588160
Another was the misinformation done by the station on February 21, 2021, during an interview with Ferdinand Marcos Jr., where he insisted on the Hybrid Election System to prevent “election fraud” especially with the 2016 elections.
Exhibit C: Marcos Jr. interview on Hybrid Election System with Deo Macalma of DZRH (Feb. 10, 2021) He was claiming that Smartmatic was aiding sa
pagcommit ng election fraud in the past elections. #StopDisinformation #HoldTheLine @rryyyaaaannnn https://t.co/0ORWZygtrY pic.twitter.com/C90ibVMwzS— Hanash Daily 🍵 #AtinAngWestPhilippineSea (@BIENsays) November 2, 2021
According to former Comelec commissioner Atty. Gregorio Larrazabal, the Hybrid Election System was full of flaws and can easily be tampered with compared to the election system that the Philippines currently has.
Ang problem sa Hydrid Election Sytem ayon kay Former Comelec Commissioner Atty. Gregorio Larrazabal. Maidagdag lang natin na si Imee, ang nagsusulong sa Senado nito. #StopDisinformation #HoldTheLine @mta_PH @legallyzen @cgarranz @iamtix95https://t.co/SbiB3PVTct pic.twitter.com/2ossjYxFxQ
— Hanash Daily 🍵 #AtinAngWestPhilippineSea (@BIENsays) November 2, 2021
This is also not the first time that activities supporting Robredo’s presidential bid were accused of people receiving “incentives,” which the vice president’s office quickly denied.
On October 24, the OVP and Team Leni Robredo denied social media posts that those who participated in the caravan received any money.