Palace says Marcos, Mabanta ‘not friends’; but ties show
Malacañang sought to disassociate President Marcos from social media operator Franco Mabanta, who was arrested on Tuesday over an alleged attempt to extort P350 million from former Speaker Martin Romualdez, a cousin of the President.
The President and Mabanta “are not friends,” Palace press officer Claire Castro said at a press briefing in Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu province, on Wednesday.
Castro did not give a direct answer when asked if Mabanta previously worked for Mr. Marcos. She instead produced two photos showing Mabanta with former President Rodrigo Duterte, Vice President Sara Duterte and their allies. The photos came from Mabanta’s social media account.
“Maybe you should ask what is his relationship with the Dutertes,” she told journalists.
She suggested that reporters direct their questions at Mabanta, who had presented himself as a political strategist since 2016 and later founded Peanut Gallery Media Network (PGMN) in 2024.
PGMN, Castro said, “has been posting many articles which are against the [Marcos] administration.”
Socmed footprint
Mabanta’s social media footprint, however, shows that he had been working for the Marcoses as early as 2018.
Yet he also became a vocal supporter of the elder Duterte, posting praises about him and his administration, including his controversial war on drugs. He once described himself as “supporter of Duterte, but not a ‘Dutertard’.”
By 2017, he had appeared in photos with other social media personalities affiliated with both the Marcoses and the Dutertes, including Krizette Chu, Mark Anthony Lopez and Lorraine Badoy.
In a Dec. 21, 2017, post, Mabanta showed photos of him attending Christmas parties organized by Duterte, Mr. Marcos and longtime Ilocos Sur politician Chavit Singson.
By January 2018, he had taken a formal role as social media director for the Marcos family, handling Mr. Marcos’ weekly vlogs.
He had since been calling Mr. Marcos “tito” (uncle) and his wife, Liza Araneta-Marcos, “tita” (aunt).
Mabanta also posted about Marcos’ sons Sandro, Simon and Vinnie, casually calling them his “bros.”
‘Strategist’
In a Sept. 13, 2019, post on Facebook, Mabanta greeted Mr. Marcos on his 62nd birthday, noting that he had been working for the Marcos family for about a year.
“Being a strategist and the Chief Social Media Director for the Marcoses was really unlike anything I had experienced in my life; less because theirs is indisputably the most crucial last name in Philippine history, but more because I was working for a proper human being. A truly good person,” he posted.
“Happy, happy birthday, Tito Bonget. You are loved, my friend,” Mabanta wrote.
While working as Mr. Marcos’ social media director, Mabanta also filled his social media feed with posts expressing support for the Dutertes and their allies, and scathing comments about then Vice President Leni Robredo and her allies.
Mabanta’s post praising Mr. Marcos and Sara Duterte continued after the “UniTeam” tandem won the 2022 elections.
By 2023, however, Mabanta had turned silent and did not post anything about the Marcoses or the Dutertes.
Creation of PGMN
In July 2024, a month after Vice President Sara Duterte resigned as education secretary, confirming the collapse of the UniTeam alliance, PGMN was created.
Based on Facebook’s page transparency feature, PGMN was previously named “Firebrand Media Group.”
The platform presents itself as an “independent” and “neutral” watchdog, but it eventually struck many netizens as a site aligned with the narratives of the ex-president’s loyal base, collectively known as Diehard Duterte Supporters (DDS).
Its roster of anchors includes known pro-Duterte personalities, such as Greco Belgica, who chaired the Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission during Duterte’s term; motoring vlogger James Deakin; Cebu-based lawyer Regal Oliva; and former Commission on Elections Commissioner Rowena Guanzon.
