Malacañang sidestepped questions Wednesday about whether Franco Mabanta ever worked for President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., with a Palace spokesperson instead pointing reporters toward the arrested social media personality’s publicly documented associations with the Duterte camp.
Presidential Communications Office press officer Claire Castro declined to give a direct answer when asked about any professional relationship between Mabanta and the President. Rather than addressing the question head-on, she produced photographs that Mabanta himself had posted on social media — images showing him alongside former President Rodrigo Duterte and former presidential spokesperson Harry Roque.
“Hindi po siya kaibigan ng Pangulo. Pero siguro mas nanaisin ko po kung ito po ang inyong itatanong dahil ito po ay mismong pinost ni Franco Mabanta. Baka ito po ang itanong ninyo: Kung ano po ang relasyon niya sa mga Duterte,” Castro told reporters.
She also drew attention to PGMN’s editorial track record, noting that Mabanta’s network had published content critical of the Marcos administration — a detail she appeared to use to underscore the distance between the two.
The pivot is notable given Mabanta’s well-documented history as a digital strategist for Marcos during the latter’s time in the Senate. He rose to national prominence through his work on pro-Marcos online campaigns ahead of the 2022 elections, before eventually launching PGMN in 2024 as an independent political commentary platform.
Mabanta and four others were arrested Tuesday night by the National Bureau of Investigation following an entrapment operation tied to an alleged ₱350-million extortion attempt against former House Speaker Martin Romualdez. Authorities say Mabanta threatened to release videos linking Romualdez to corruption in flood control projects unless the lawmaker paid up. Romualdez, who now represents Leyte’s first district, is separately facing Ombudsman scrutiny over alleged irregularities in those same projects.
Mabanta has denied all charges, calling the arrest a deliberate act of silencing. He said PGMN had completed a 90-minute documentary on what he described as Romualdez’s corruption as Speaker, and that the video was ready for release at the time of his arrest.
The NBI has said robbery by extortion charges and Cybercrime Prevention Act violations are being prepared for filing after inquest proceedings are completed.
