SUMMARY
This is AI generated summarization, which may have errors. For context, always refer to the full article.
Claim: House Deputy Minority Leader and ACT Teachers Representative France Castro has been suspended from her post in the lower chamber.
Rating: FALSE
Why we fact-checked this: The video bearing the claim has gained 3,493 views, 153 likes, and 19 comments as of writing. It was uploaded on June 4 by a YouTube account notorious for spreading disinformation.
The text in the thumbnail reads: “Sibak na sa Kongreso. Suspendido na. Karma si Castro. Suspendido sa Kongreso.” (Fired from Congress. Suspended. Castro got her comeuppance. Suspended from Congress.)
It also features the photos of Castro, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., Vice President Sara Duterte, and former president Rodrigo Duterte.
The facts: The House of Representatives website shows that Castro is still part of its roll of members.
The video also did not contain proof Castro is no longer in office, and no official sources corroborate the claim.
On Wednesday, June 5, Castro even gave a privilege speech on extrajudicial killings under the former Duterte administration.
Article VI, Section 16, of the Constitution explains the process for expelling a sitting House member: “Each House may determine the rules of its proceedings, punish its Members for disorderly behavior, and, with the concurrence of two-thirds of all its Members, suspend or expel a Member. A penalty of suspension, when imposed, shall not exceed sixty days.”
ALSO ON RAPPLER
- In confidential funds fiasco, Sara Duterte resorts to personal attacks vs critics
- Possible leak? 157 foreigners caught leaving Porac POGO before police ops
- WATCH: Early look at Comelec’s new vote counting machines for 2025
- Restoring the Pasig River: From one Marcos to another
Castro vs Dutertes: The misleading video circulated following Castro’s recent comments reiterating that the release of P125 million confidential funds to the Office of the Vice President (OVP) in 2022 was “illegal” and “unconstitutional.”
Castro made the statement after the OVP submitted its formal comments before the Supreme Court asking for the dismissal of petitions filed against the transfer. In December 2023, Castro and other Makabayan bloc lawmakers filed a petition questioning the legality of Duterte’s confidential funds.
During the 2024 budget deliberations, the Vice President singled out two women lawmakers: Castro and Senator Risa Hontiveros, who both scrutinized her confidential funds. (READ: Hontiveros on Duterte’s use of P125M in 11 days: Daig pa may patagong credit card)
Aside from the Vice President, Castro is also at odds with the elder Duterte. The House deputy minority leader is probing the former president’s drug war and has recently said that she wanted to summon him to a future hearing of the House committee on appropriations over his alleged go-signal for a dubious fund transfer for pandemic supplies in 2020. (READ: LIST: Everything you need to know about the Pharmally pandemic deals scandal) – James Patrick Cruz/Rappler.com
Keep us aware of suspicious Facebook pages, groups, accounts, websites, articles, or photos in your network by contacting us at factcheck@rappler.com. Let us battle disinformation one Fact Check at a time.
Add a comment
How does this make you feel?
There are no comments yet. Add your comment to start the conversation.