Fake quote falsely linked to Philippine president after death of young athlete

Published on August 4, 2026 at 11:59
2 min read
By Ara EUGENIO, AFP Philippines

After the death of young Filipino athlete Rene Baterbonia at a training camp sparked widespread calls for accountability, social media posts circulated a fabricated quote attributed to President Ferdinand Marcos questioning the late basketball player's significance. AFP found no evidence that Marcos made the remarks or publicly commented on the incident.

"Who is this Rene Baterbonia? What has he done for the Philippines?" reads a quote attributed to President Ferdinand Marcos in a Facebook post shared on July 28, 2026.

The quote is featured alongside an image of Marcos speaking at a podium bearing the presidential seal and the logo of state broadcaster RTVM.

Baterbonia was a recent recruit of the Ateneo de Manila men's basketball team whose fatal drowning during a team-building activity in June prompted a Senate inquiry into the circumstances of his death alongside teammate Divine Adili (archived link).

The 18-year-old's death drew widespread attention across the Philippines, particularly in his home island of Mindanao, where many had followed his rise from a small-town athlete to a promising talent in the capital's collegiate basketball scene (archived link).

"He's more famous than you, Mr President," reads the Tagalog-language caption.

Screenshot of false post taken August 3, 2026, with red x added by AFP

Similar posts circulated elsewhere on Facebook, drawing user comments that indicated many believed the remarks came from Marcos -- whose approval rating sits at 38 percent according to recent polling.

"You really don't know anything, BBM," read one comment, using the president's popular initials. Another said, "This guy is really clueless. He doesn't know anything."

But the claim that Marcos publicly disparaged Baterbonia has no basis in fact.

No mention in presidential address

A keyword search of RTVM's YouTube channel found the image matches footage from Marcos's fifth State of the Nation Address delivered on July 28, 2026 (archived link).

AFP journalists who covered the address in person found no instance in which Marcos referred to Baterbonia.

During his speech, Marcos mentioned rising energy costs and inflation linked to the Middle East conflict, as well as an investigation into a multibillion-peso corruption scandal involving bogus flood control projects (archived link).

AFP reviewed the official transcript of the address, presidential communications and credible media reports, and found no record of Marcos making the purported remarks (archived link).

Screenshot comparison between falsely shared post (L) and RTVM video of SONA address (R), with the red X added by AFP

Following the incident in June, presidential spokeswoman Claire Castro conveyed Marcos's condolences to the families of Baterbonia and Adili and said the president wanted a prompt investigation into the circumstances surrounding their deaths (archived link).

Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla later said authorities were preparing to recommend charges before the Department of Justice as investigations involving school officials and others linked to the activity neared completion (archived link).

But AFP found no public record of Marcos himself making any statement relating to the incident.

AFP has previously debunked misinformation about the Philippine president.

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