SC to probe fake news about arrest TRO

MANILA, Philippines — The Supreme Court (SC) said it will investigate and impose sanctions against individuals who falsely claimed that the court issued a temporary restraining order (TRO) on the arrest of former president Rodrigo Duterte and that it received a petition seeking the resignation of President Marcos.

“These acts of disinformation, including previous false reports on March 11, 2025 alleging that the SC issued a TRO, will be submitted for appropriate action,” SC spokesperson Camille Ting said.

“The SC will investigate these incidents and take necessary measures, including the imposition of proper sanctions on those responsible,” she added.

On March 11, the day of his arrest, Duterte and Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa filed a petition asking the SC to order the government to release the former president from detention.

They also requested a TRO to prevent the government from cooperating with the International Criminal Court following Duterte’s arrest.

Shortly after, social media posts falsely claimed that the SC had granted the TRO request. However, the high court denied issuing any such order.

“We urge the public to rely on official announcements from the SC, which are published on its official website (sc.judiciary.gov.ph) and verified social media accounts,” Ting said.

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

Additionally, the SC dismissed as fake a press release stating that it had received a petition backed by 16 million signatures calling for Marcos’ resignation.

Ting noted that two Facebook accounts falsely claimed the SC would convene on March 18 to discuss the alleged petition.

“This is completely untrue. The Supreme Court has not received any such petition, and no en banc session is scheduled today for this matter,” she said.

‘End deception’

House assistant majority leader and Lanao del Sur Rep. Zia Alonto Adiong also condemned yesterday the spread of fake news on President Marcos’ resignation, calling it a reckless and desperate attempt to deceive the public and destabilize the government.

“This is a blatant act of deception, meant to sow confusion and disrupt our nation. We will not allow malicious actors to use the Supreme Court as a tool for political sabotage. The law must come down hard on those spreading these lies,” Adiong said in a statement.

He lauded the SC for swiftly debunking the fabricated document and expressed full support for efforts to hold the perpetrators accountable.

The SC traced the document’s source to Facebook accounts named “Choose Libungan” and “Bernard Flores Maicon.