MANILA, Philippines — There is no truth to the reported harassment by police of University of the Philippines student athletes who were on their way to the UP Diliman campus in Quezon City on Tuesday, police said yesterday.
Brig. Gen. Remus Medina, director of the Quezon City Police District, said no such incident took place based on their coordination with the UP Diliman police.
The UP Fighting Maroons Club said in a statement posted on Facebook that some student athletes were stopped by police on their way back to the campus.
However, Medina said UP police officer-in-charge Wilfredo Desierto declared the reported incident to be untrue.
“While social media can serve as an avenue to exercise freedom of speech and expression, there is an attached accountability given that we are living in an era of fake news and disinformation,” Medina said in a statement.
He urged the public to always verify the source of information on social media platforms, warning that posting fake articles or misinformation is punishable under Republic Act 10175 or the Cybercrime Prevention Act.
“As the slogan goes, think before you click,” Medina said.
