The Department of Justice has been asked to prosecute pro-Duterte blogger Drew Olivar for posting a bomb joke on his Facebook page prior to the protest rallies last Sept. 21 to mark the 46th anniversary of the martial law declaration.
In a complaint, the National Capital Region Police Office charged Olivar with violation of Section 1, Presidential Decree 1727, or Anti-Bomb Joke Law, in relation to Republic Act 10175 or Cybercrime Prevention Act.
The NCRPO alleged that Olivar posted on his Facebook account a warning for protesters not to join rallies because of supposed information the Plaza Miranda bombing during the Marcos administration would be repeated.
The bombing occurred in August 1971 during a political rally by the opposition Liberal Party where all the top leaders, except party secretary-general Senator Benigno Aquino Jr., were present and injured, which forced Marcos to suspend the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus.
“He knew that the information he disseminated was false as he publicly admitted the posting of the same during a press conference at the headquarters of the NCRPO, Camp Bagong Diwa, Bicutan, Taguig City on September 22, 2018,” stated the complaint filed by Sr. Insp. Rommel Bautista of the Regional Investigation and Detective Management Division.
Under P.D. 1727, those found guilty of making bomb jokes would be punished with imprisonment of not more than five years or a fine of not more than P40,000.
Olivar, known for being Presidential Communications Assistant Secretary Mocha Uson’ co-host in an online show, drew flak for his Facebook post last week.
In the Facebook post, Olivar suggested that a bombing similar to Plaza Miranda in 1971 might happen again.
“Joining a rally on Edsa is scary because reports are spreading that the bombing of Plaza Miranda might happen again. If I were you, I would not go,” read the post, which has since been taken down.