Former Presidential Spokesperson Atty. Harry Roque has been identified as the person responsible for spreading a video that allegedly shows President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. using illegal drugs.
During the House Tri-Committee hearing on Tuesday, Vicente Bencalo, a vlogger known as Pebbles Cunanan, came forward and revealed the information as part of the ongoing investigation by the committee into the spread of disinformation.
The vlogger then explained that the purpose of the video was to destabilize the Marcos administration. Furthermore, Cunanan submitted an affidavit detailing all the information about the said video.
Rizal 2nd District Representative Romeo Acop raised the question during the hearing, confirming if the video had been edited, as indicated by Cunanan in the affidavit.
"Yung raw version po kasi kapag tinignan niyo, hindi niyo siya masasabi, na kahit na hindi po siya talaga, ay hindi niyo rin po talaga masasabi na si PBBM," Cunanan told Acop.
"So, in-enhance po nila ‘yung video para mas maging maliwanag at mas makita," she added.
Cunanan then confirmed that the man in the video allegedly using cocaine is not President Marcos, contrary to the claims that had previously circulated.
According to Cunanan, the plan to release the "polvoron" video was made during a private dinner in Hong Kong on July 7, 2024, following the Maisug rally, alongside other pro-Duterte vloggers and personalities.
In the hearing, a photograph was presented showing Cunanan confirming the attendance of Roque, Atty. Vic Rodriguez, Atty. Glen Chong, former Press Secretary Trixie Cruz Angeles, Lorraine Badoy, Sass Sasot, and other notable figures.
Cunanan explained that she chose to move forward and sign the affidavit to "set things right."
In July 2024, a video surfaced showing a man allegedly resembling Marcos, purportedly "sniffing" illegal drugs. The video was released just one day before Marcos was scheduled to deliver his third State of the Nation Address (SONA).
AI experts from the Deepfakes Analysis Unit (DAU) reported that the video had been heavily altered to falsely depict the man in the footage as Marcos.
The Philippine National Police (PNP) and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) also refuted the authenticity of the video. Both agencies stated that the facial features of the man in the video did not correspond or match those of Marcos.
