‘FB’ shows ugly side again; blocks Parlade, Badoy accounts

SOCIAL media giant, Facebook, has again shown its contempt for the Philippine Constitution and the Bill of Rights after “blocking” the FB accounts of Southern Luzon (Solcom) area commander, Lt. General Antonio ‘Jun’ Parlade and presidential communication undersecretary, Lorraine Badoy.

And as usual, FB claimed both were ‘guilty’ of violating its “community standard” on the posting of any message or article in its social media platform and which it classified as “coordinate inappropriate behavior” (CIB).
Both government officials are spokespersons of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC).

This is the second incident since September 2020 that FB decided to disrespect the country’s rule of law and the people’s right to freedom of expression by closing down accounts arbitrarily.

Parlade’s account was block for 30 days by FB after he posted an article criticizing the country’s continued commemoration of the ‘EDSA People Power’ held every February 25.

The date marks the hasty departure from Malacañang of then Pres. Ferdinand Marcos and his family in 1986 after a faction of the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the State Department allied themselves with the political opposition to grab power for themselves.

On the other hand, Badoy’s account was similarly suspended for the next 30 days after she posted an article accusing online news site, ‘Rappler’ of being a “mouthpiece” of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP).

Badoy has noted that Rappler has been consistent in giving wide coverage to the propaganda releases of the CPP and its front organizations.

Last September 22, 2020, Nathaniel Gleicher, head of FB’s cyber security group, announced they had staged a crackdown in the Philippines, removing or taking down, 155 accounts, 11 pages, 9 groups and 6 ‘Instagram’ accounts.

The arbitrary shutdown by Facebook, in turn, affected some 133,000 FB accounts, involving some 61,000 individual members.

Of the accounts taken down by FB, 57 accounts, 31 pages and a further 20 Instagram accounts were based in the Philippines.

Most of these accounts are critical of the CPP while others are promoting good relationship between the Philippines and China.

Among those taken down by FB at the time was the FB account of the ‘Hands Off Our Children’ movement (HOOC), a group of parents whose children were recruited into the ranks of the CPP and its armed wing, the New People’s Army (NPA).

The latest move by FB to shut down the accounts of Parlade and Badoy is also an affront to the National Privacy Commission, which after the first incident, had bowed to conduct a “deeper probe” on FB’s decision.

But whatever was the result of the FB-NPC meeting, it is now apparently clear that FB is not taking the commission seriously.

‘The ties that bind’

It can be recalled that Gleicher has never hidden his support for discredited Rappler founder, Maria Ressa, who is now a convicted criminal and out on bail after being convicted for libel last June 22, 2020 by a Manila court.

After Ressa’s conviction, Gleicher even “twitted” he considers the court ruling as a “dark, dark day for press freedom.”

Incidentally, Rappler remains as among the local ‘factcheckers’ of FB Philippines and Badoy’s accusation has added to the news site’s discredit among Filipinos.

FB Philippines’ head of public policy, Claire Amador, also turned out to be a close supporter of the Liberal Party (LP).

Before moving to FB, Amador previously served as undersecretary at the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) during the Noynoy Aquino administration.

On the other hand, it has been admitted today that the LP has long been in bed with the communists, since the CPP was founded in 1968.

Various accounts claimed that in 1969, the LP’s most notable member, former Sen. Benigno ‘Ninoy’ Aquino Jr., “brokered’ the union between the CPP headed by Jose Maria Sison and the armed group of Bernabe ‘Kumander Dante’ Buscayno, which became the New People’s Army (NPA).

Aquino, whose father, Benigno senior, was a confirmed collaborator during the Japanese occupation, was killed by alleged communist hitman, Rolando Galman, after insisting on coming back in 1983. Ninoy was the husband of former Pres. Corazon Aquino and father to former president, Noynoy Aquino.