FACT CHECK: Marcos, Duterte did not order Vice Ganda to leave the country

Claim: President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Vice President Sara Duterte have ordered comedian and talk show host Vice Ganda to leave the country.

Rating: FALSE

Why we fact-checked this: As of writing, the YouTube video posted by Pinas News Insider on November 30 has gained 72,081 views, 1,800 likes, and 403 comments.

The video is titled: “KAKAPASOK LANG Hala! Grabe ang Nangyare kay Vice Ganda Pinalayas sa Pinas! Utos ni PRES BBM VP SARA!”

(Just in! What happened to Vice Ganda is unbelievable, told to leave the Philippines! Ordered by President BBM and Vice President Sara.)

The bottom line: Neither Marcos nor Duterte have made any statements on their official social media accounts or through Radio Television Malacañang, the Office of the President, and the Office of the Vice President (OVP) about any alleged order to expel Vice Ganda from the Philippines. The video primarily features comments from online users, encouraging the comedian to leave the country due to remarks that supposedly disrespected the Vice President.

The claim comes from Vice Ganda’s “jokes” about confidential funds during an episode of the musical game show Everybody, Sing!, where the talk show host quipped after a contestant’s response about talent fees: “Confidential din ‘yung talent fee. Ta’s mauubos mo rin in 11 days.” (The talent fee is confidential. And you’ll also spend it all in 11 days.)

Vice Ganda added: “Ikaw ba yung tipong manager, kunyari sasabihin mo na 8,000 lang pero talagang 10,000 yung binigay sa inyo para mas malaki yung sa’yo?” (Are you the type of manager who, for example, will say [you received] only 8,000 but it’s actually 10,000, so that your share is bigger?)

The video’s narrator said Vice Ganda was spreading “black propaganda” by alluding to Duterte’s controversial use of confidential funds and alleging corruption.

Confidential funds: The Vice President was under fire in recent months over the lack of transparency regarding her office’s use of confidential funds. In September, it was revealed that the OVP spent its P125-million confidential funds for 2022 in just 11 days. Amid public criticism, the House of Representatives thumbed down Duterte’s request for confidential funds in the proposed 2024 budget, with the Vice President eventually dropping her bid. (READ: Sara Duterte gives up bid for confidential funds: Mere political strategy?)

The upload of the misleading video comes amid questions over the legality of the 2022 confidential funds, which is now the subject of a petition before the Supreme Court (SC). The petition seeks the return of the funds. In a notice dated November 14 and released by the SC on December 4, Duterte and several others were asked to comment on the petition.

Repeat offender: Rappler fact-checked a similar claim in October, which also came from the same YouTube channel with 813,000 subscribers. The channel has a history of making false claims against other public figures who have supposedly insulted Marcos or Duterte:

– Andrei Santos/Rappler.com

Andrei Santos is a graduate of Rappler’s fact-checking mentorship program. This fact check was reviewed by a member of Rappler’s research team and a senior editor. Learn more about Rappler’s fact-checking mentorship program here.

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