A public school teacher in Danao City, Cebu, has been warned that a flippant online remark about shooting a Palace press officer could cost her both her license and her job, on top of exposing her to criminal liability.
Zenith Enriquez, the teacher involved, drew the warning from Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary Claire Castro herself, who was the target of the remark. Castro noted that administrative proceedings against Enriquez could end in the cancellation of her teaching credentials and her dismissal from the profession.
The comment carries greater weight, according to Castro, precisely because it circulated on social media rather than in a private setting.
The remark traces back to a Facebook post by content creator Lovely Granada. Beneath it, one commenter jokingly egged Enriquez on to shoot Castro, and the teacher answered with a quip about shooting the official in the mouth. Granada flagged the reply and questioned whether that kind of talk suited someone in the teaching profession.
Enriquez has since issued a public apology online, pairing it with an AI-generated image showing herself dressed in a police uniform.
Whether that apology will spare her formal action remains unsettled, as Castro stopped short of saying whether she would pursue charges.
For Castro, the episode underscores a broader expectation: educators and other public figures ought to conduct themselves carefully online, given the influence they hold over young people who model their behavior.
The confrontation lands only days after Castro herself came under fire from teachers. She had claimed that certain educators were coaching students toward disrespect, pointing to episodes in Davao and to a video that spread widely showing a teacher prompting students to brand President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. a “bangag.”
