Did Senator-judge Pia Cayetano just amplify a misleading video of Chel Diokno?

SENATOR JUDGE. Senator Pia Cayetano during the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte. Pia Cayetano/Facebook Senator-judge Pia Cayetano, who loves to read and lecture, should perhaps revisit the Code of Professional Responsibility and Accountability for lawyers Did Senator-judge Pia Cayetano just help spread disinformation? For someone who has repeatedly reminded everyone how much homework she does before every impeachment hearing, Cayetano’s Facebook post is raising eyebrows. Cayetano — a lawyer and 1991 graduate of the University of the Philippines College of Law who ranked seventh in her class — shared a 57-second spliced video of House prosecutor Chel Diokno last Friday, July 24. The clip shows Diokno answering Senator Alan Peter Cayetano’s questions about issuing subpoenas for Vice President Sara Duterte’s financial records. But it cuts out the rest of Diokno’s explanation, leaving viewers with the impression that the prosecution admitted it was accusing Duterte without evidence. The video also carried the overlay text: “Nagbabakasakali lang? Walang mga ebidensiya pero nag-aakusa na!” (Just taking a shot in the dark? No evidence, yet already making accusations!) House prosecution spokesperson Jay Tolosa called the post “concerning and alarming” during a press briefing on Wednesday, July 29. He warned that it could reinforce the perception that members of the impeachment court — who are supposed to remain impartial — have already formed an opinion on the case. On Wednesday, Tindig Pilipinas, a coalition of civil society groups, also wrote the Senate committee on ethics and privileges, asking it to investigate Cayetano and the video she shared. What Diokno actually said The full statement as recorded in the Senate’s journal records last July 20 shows Diokno saying: “And iyong tinutukoy po ninyong fishing expedition, iyon ay maaaring sabihin nating nangyari only if the party requesting the evidence or documents ay nagbabakasakali lang — baka may makuha tayo dito. In our case, I have to disagree that there was any sort of fishing expedition because based on what the committee on justice and later the plenary of the House found was sufficient, there was enough cause to proceed with the case.” (What you are referring to as a “fishing expedition” could be said to have occurred only if the party requesting the evidence or documents was merely taking a shot in the dark — hoping they might find something there.) The same statement can be heard in the Senate’s livestream of the impeachment trial proceedings. It would be hard for the lady senator to miss this exchange between her brother and Diokno because she was present during the said hearing. Could she be hard of hearing or guilty of selective hearing? In a Facebook post, Diokno also immediately provided the full context of his remarks. Diokno explained that a “fishing expedition” would apply only if investigators were merely hoping to stumble upon evidence. “Hindi tayo nagbabakasakali lang,” he said, adding that the prosecution relied on Anti-Money Laundering Council records that allegedly showed billions of pesos passing through the accounts of Duterte and her husband. (We are not merely taking a shot in the dark.) According to Diokno, the subpoena was sought so both the prosecution and the defense could examine the bank records during the trial. He noted that the House could not have legally obtained those records before the impeachment proceedings because doing so without a court order would have violated Duterte’s rights and due process. Where did the spliced video clip come from? The video shared by Cayetano bears a watermark resembling “Lapu-Lapu.” A reverse image search traced the same logo to the Facebook page Bisaya na Pud, created in February 2016. The page has consistently published pro-Duterte content, including AI-generated videos. The page previously uploaded a similarly edited clip, although the post has since been deleted. Rappler sought Cayetano’s comment, but she has yet to respond as of writing. This story will be updated once she replies. Throughout the impeachment trial, Cayetano has repeatedly emphasized the hours she spends reading hundreds of pages of documents before every hearing. Yet she apparently failed to verify a video lasting less than a minute before sharing it with her more than 1.1 million Facebook followers. The video has since amassed 4.4 million views and has been reposted by more than 17,000 Facebook users. Dozens of pro-Duterte accounts have also amplified it. At the start of the impeachment trial, every senator-judge took an oath to remain impartial. Under Section 38 of the Code of Professional Responsibility and Accountability, “a lawyer shall not knowingly or maliciously post, share, upload or otherwise disseminate false or unverified statements, claims, or commit any other act of disinformation.” Given how often Cayetano reminds everyone about the importance of reading, perhaps it’s worth revisiting the oath she herself took and what the Code of Professional Responsibility and Accountability for lawyers says. – Rappler.com How does this make you feel? Loading