Bicol Saro party-list Rep. Terry Ridon – Photo courtesy of Terry Ridon/Facebook
Bicol Saro party-list Rep. Terry Ridon is seeking the help of the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center to trace the source of fabricated social media posts portraying lawyer Michael Poa as attacking him.
Ridon disclosed the planned coordination with the CICC on Friday after Poa denied issuing remarks attributed to him in a circulating quote card.
The two are on opposite sides of Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial. Ridon belongs to the House prosecution team, while Poa serves as a lawyer and spokesperson for the defense.
Ridon acknowledged Poa’s clarification and maintained that their opposing roles in the proceedings had not affected his respect for the defense lawyer. He instead criticized those responsible for manufacturing the supposed exchange.
He pointed to the Facebook page Central Luzon News Update as the alleged origin of one quote card that purported to show Poa responding to his remarks about defense lawyer Kristine Ferrer. Ridon also accused the page of circulating other questionable materials involving impeachment figures.
Poa had rejected the statement attributed to him, maintaining that he had not personally attacked Ridon. He also asked social media pages carrying the fabricated remarks to remove them.
The controversy emerged amid heightened online attention surrounding Duterte’s impeachment trial, where exchanges between the prosecution and defense have frequently drawn reactions on social media.
Ridon said determining who created and spread fabricated posts was necessary as the prosecution, defense and Senate impeachment court deal with misinformation surrounding the proceedings.