SC denies receiving petition on Pres. Marcos' resignation

CEBU, Philippines — The Supreme Court has denied receiving any document related to a so-called “Petition on 16 million signatures calling for President Marcos' resignation,” dismissing the claim as false information circulating on social media.

In an official statement released on its Facebook page, the Supreme Court spokesperson addressed posts from social media accounts named “Choose Libungan” and “Bernard Flores Maicon,” which shared a fabricated document allegedly issued by the high tribunal. The document, dated March 16, 2025, falsely claimed that the Court had received the petition and would take action.

“We categorically deny the authenticity of this document. No such statement has been issued by the Supreme Court Spokesperson,” the spokesperson stated.

Further, the same Facebook accounts separately claimed that the Supreme Court En Banc would convene on March 17, 2025, to deliberate on the alleged petition.

“This is completely untrue. The Supreme Court has not received any such petition, and no En Banc session is scheduled today (Monday) for this matter,” the spokesperson clarified.

The Supreme Court condemned these acts of disinformation, noting that similar false reports surfaced on March 11, 2025, alleging that the Court had issued a temporary restraining order.

“These incidents will be submitted for appropriate action,” the spokesperson said, adding that the Court will investigate the matter and take necessary measures, including possible sanctions against those responsible.

The Supreme Court also urged the public to rely only on its official announcements published on its official website (sc.judiciary.gov.ph) and verified social media accounts.

“We also caution against sharing unverified information and encourage the public to verify the authenticity of any statement claiming to be from the Supreme Court before disseminating it,” the spokesperson added.

The social media user “Choose Libungan” posted the claim at around 6 a.m. on March 16, 2025, stating that 16 million people had signed the petition and that the Supreme Court was set to take action. As of 5 p.m. yesterday, the post had garnered 7,500 likes and reactions, 3,600 comments, and 12,300 shares.

Later, at around 10 a.m. on the same day, Libungan posted another claim citing the content of the supposed petition. This post received 6,200 likes and reactions, 17 comments, and 14,600 shares.

A third post, made at around 10 a.m. on March 16, 2025, falsely quoted a statement from the Supreme Court spokesperson. This post gained 440 likes, 8 comments, and 687 shares. As of 5 p.m. yesterday, none of these posts had been deleted. Libungan’s account reportedly has 4,000 followers.

Meanwhile, Bernard Flores Maicon, whose Facebook page has 91,000 followers, posted at around 4 p.m. on March 17, 2025, stating, “I deleted that post since The Supreme Court Ph page confirmed that post was fake and I got that information from Choose Libungan.”

“I will take responsibility for what I had posted regarding that matter and [will make] sure [to be] vigilant in sharing public information next time,” Maicon added. — (FREEMAN)