Senator Leila De Lima criticized Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque on Thursday for saying President Rodrigo Duterte could have sent the military to padlock Rappler if he really wanted to. During a press conference on Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2018, Roque was asked if the closure of Rappler by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was linked to Duterte complaining of certain media agencies and threatening them. “Roque should be grateful that when the mob that storms Malacañang comes, the people won’t grind him for dog food, although they are capable of it, like they were capable of it when they drove the last demagogues out of Malacañang,” she said. In a 29-page decision dated Jan. 11 and released last Monday, the SEC revoked Rappler’s license to operate, after it “(violated) the constitutional and statutory Foreign Equity Restrictions in Mass Media enforceable through rules and laws within the mandate of the Commission.”During his State of the Nation Address last year, Duterte threatened to have Rappler’s ownership investigated apparently after reports that it was controlled by foreigners in violation of the Constitutional requirement that local media outfits should be 100 percent Filipino owned. /cbbREAD: Rappler vows to continue bringing news: ‘We will hold the line’ADVERTISEMENT

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer January 18, 2018 06:11 UTC