FB pages falsely claim CDO congressional bet ‘disqualified’ in polls

False information spread on Facebook a day before the 2025 elections, claiming that Cagayan de Oro City’s 1st District congressional candidate Raineir Joaquin “Kikang” Uy has been disqualified from running in the 2025 elections. 

Posts include edited images impersonating news outlets like ABS-CBN News and CNN Philippines, posted by Isyu Karon, a Davao-based Facebook page. This was also posted in a Facebook page called UP Fact Check, a page mimicking a University of the Philippines fact-checking site and that has since been taken down due to its numerous fake fact-checks. 

On Dec. 17, Comelec lawyers Maria Norina Tangaro-Casingal, Albert Leonard Rodriguez and Persis del Camat-Dabalos filed a petition to disqualify Uy over alleged irregularities in the voter registration process in Barangay Carmen, where he serves as barangay chairman.

However, the petition has since been formally withdrawn, citing the need for further investigation, and no disqualification ruling has been issued against Uy.

Despite an official statement by Comelec, clarifying that no disqualification order has been issued against Uy, multiple Facebook pages continue to spread the false claim.

Under Article IX-C of the 1987 Philippine Constitution, the Comelec is the sole body authorized to handle election-related cases. Any decision must undergo proper legal processes and must be officially published before it becomes final and effective. (MS)