A clip of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos supposedly admitting that he is just a clone needs context. It was from an old interview where he dispelled the rumor as an “urban legend.”
Since Aug. 3, Facebook (FB) users have been circulating a 30-second clip of Marcos seemingly telling a story of how the “real Bongbong” died years ago and was replaced by his parents with a clone. A TikTok user also uploaded a copy of the clip last July 27.
In the snippet, a younger-looking Marcos said:
“In that fight, ninakawan ako. Sinaksak ako. Patay ako. (I was robbed. I was stabbed. I died.) I’m dead. Bongbong is dead. So, this is where it gets interesting. My parents then decided to find another boy who looked like me, who was the same age as me and present[ed] that as me, their son, to the public. And that the person you see now is the replacement, not the original. That’s the story.”
Netizens in the comment section thought that the clip was an admission while others speculated that the video was edited.
The clip was actually taken out of context. In the full interview, Marcos only narrated what he called an “urban legend” of how he supposedly died and was replaced by another person after getting into a fight while studying in England.
The clip can be traced back to a YouTube video uploaded on March 14, 2010 by user Juned Sonido.
After telling the fake stabbing story, at the 1:11-minute mark, Marcos jokingly explained that some suggested he take a DNA test to prove his identity.
“May DNA [test] na ngayon. Magpatest ka para maliwanag na maliwanag. Sabi ko, iniiisip ko nang mabuti, sabi ko, hindi, okay din maging urban legend eh di ba? Pagka naayos ko na ‘yung problema, pagka na-prove ko na na ako na, wala na ‘yung urban legend. Wala na tayong pag-uusapan (There is DNA testing now. They said to get tested to have clarity. I said, I’m thinking carefully, I said, no, it’s okay to be an urban legend, right? Once I fix the problem, once I prove myself, the urban legend would be gone. We’ll have nothing to talk about). Let the story go.”
Marcos previously dispelled the claims in a 2012 interview and a 2019 vlog.
The clip without proper context first resurfaced on social media days after the president’s State of the Nation Address. An unverified video of the president snorting cocaine also made rounds online that same day which government officials and agencies have since claimed to be fabricated.
Four posts by two FB users and the pages DDS – Duterte Discipline System (created on May 27, 2015) and Pilipinas Kong Mahal (May 27, 2022) collectively garnered 29,993 reactions, 9,184 comments, 13,691 shares and 6,309,400 views. The TikTok post by user @esuga.esuga also garnered 4,197 reactions, 2,155 comments, 1,956 shares and 226,000 views.
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