Lawmaker to vlogger held for contempt: Do you still have honor?

MANILA, Philippines — Lanao del Sur 1st District Rep. Zia Alonto Adiong has questioned vlogger Sass Rogando Sasot — who said that she was honored to be cited for contempt by a congressional chamber — if she even has honor in the first place.

During a press briefing at the Batasang Pambansa complex on Thursday, Adiong was asked about Sasot’s statements in a Facebook livestream, wherein she said it WAS an honor to be cited for contempt by a “rotten” House of Representatives, whose members are supposedly under corrupt leadership.

According to Adiong, Sasot and the other vloggers DID not even have the honor to face a “legitimate investigation.” The House tri-committee is conducting an inquiry in aid of legislation into misinformation and disinformation on social media.

“First of all, does she still have the honor? I mean these are people who portray themselves as heroes but do not have the honor to face a legitimate investigation and to face the public and explain themselves under oath as to why they are saying things that are not true,” Adiong said in Filipino.

“So I think being honorable is not only [about] being brave online but [being] brave enough to face the charges and under oath express your sentiments,” he added.

Sasot and two other social media personalities — Jeffrey Celiz and former communications undersecretary Lorraine Badoy — were all cited for contempt by the House tri-committee as they continued to skip the hearings.

The contempt order was handed down last Tuesday, after a motion from Abang Lingkod party-list Rep. Joseph Stephen Paduano.

Both Sasot and Badoy reasoned that they were outside of the country right now.

READ: Sasot, Celiz, Badoy cited for contempt for skipping House hearing

Meanwhile, Adiong thanked the vloggers and bloggers who showed up before the House, as their input would be vital in the tri-committee’s probe of misinformation and disinformation spreading on social media.

During the third tri-committee hearing on March 21, several online vloggers  — including former press secretary Trixie Cruz-Angeles — appeared before the House after they skipped the first two hearings.

Most of the vloggers showed up again during the fourth hearing.

“And by the way, I thank those bloggers who have participated in our committee hearings, I think these people [were] courageous enough to explain themselves and take the chance and to take the opportunity granted to them because they were really given invitation and due process,” Adiong noted, speaking in a mix of English and Filipino.

“So I thank them for continuously engaging the committee and for explaining their side. Because that’s what we want to happen […] they are part of a very active sector on social media platforms.  So their inputs would be very much valued and very much appreciated,” he added.

The tri-committee’s probe started after lawmakers filed resolutions and delivered privilege speeches, as misinformation and disinformation were spreading about the chairpersons of the House quad committee.

At that time, the quad committee was probing illegal activities in Philippine offshore gaming operators, the illicit drug trade, and extrajudicial killings in the past administration’s drug war.

Aside from Sasot, Celiz, and Badoy, the tri-committee also cited for contempt blogger Mark Anthony Lopez for speaking against the investigation, which lawmakers deemed to be a violation of the chamber’s internal rules.

During the hearing, Paduano read portions of Lopez’s blog, which he made after he appeared at the March 21 meeting. In it, the blogger criticized the House for spending time scrutinizing their actions on social media.

According to Paduano, it was already discussed before the hearing was suspended that maligning and attacking the chamber’s investigation can be tantamount to disciplinary action.

(2025/04/10-15:31)