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Former Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV did not issue a statement. Artificial intelligence detection tool flagged video as AI-generated
Claim: The video shows former Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV calling Vice President Sara Duterte a drug addict.
Rating: False
Why we fact-checked this: The video, posted on May 23, has already received an estimated 183,000 views, 2,700 reactions, 2,600 comments, and 481 shares at the time of writing.
The video shows a photo of Mr. Trillanes and Mr. Duterte with a shaved head in front of the Senate building. Trillanes is shown saying:Makikita niyo diyan, babaan adik at may sayad siya. Grabe, tapos mga tao, “Duterte pa ding.” Kitan Kita, Sara Duterte’s Adik. Utak ba yang ng babe? Ganiyan ang gupit? Silauro lang ang magpagupit ganyan.”
(You see, this woman is a drug addict and insane. This is terrible. People say, “We’re still with Dutertes.” It’s obvious that Sara Duterte is a drug addict. Is that how women think? With hair like that? Only insane people would have hair like that.)
The post did not include a disclaimer that the video was generated using artificial intelligence (AI). Many Facebook users in the comments section believed that Mr. Trillanes had indeed made the statement.
One comment reads: “Sumsobra ka na” [Trillanes] ah. Is Bakit guilty, Sara Duterte? Dahir mabukin na ang ninakau nyo. ”
(You crossed the line, Trillanes. Why would you do that? [fixated] What about Sara Duterte? Because the money you stole will be found out? )
fact: Mr. Trillanes did not issue a statement. The AI detection tool flagged the video as AI-generated. Truth Scan detected a 66% chance that the video was generated using an AI tool. Meanwhile, Hive Moderation flagged this video as potentially containing 93.8% AI-generated audio.
In its analysis, Deepfake Detection noted several subtle inconsistencies, including “minor inconsistencies in lip syncing and unnatural facial expressions, especially around the mouth.”
The photo of Mr Duterte with a shaved head was taken in 2015 to persuade his father, former President Rodrigo Duterte, to run for president in 2016.
Reverse image searches also did not show any real videos that resembled the AI-generated content. There are also no reports of Mr. Trillanes criticizing the vice president’s appearance and linking it to drug abuse.
Duterte critics: Trillanes, a former senator, has long been a critic of Dutertes since the days of former President Duterte. In 2018, Trillanes called for a Senate investigation into Dutertes’ corruption allegations. In 2025, Mr. Trillanes sued Mr. Duterte and Sen. Pong Go, accusing him of plunder over contracts awarded to a company owned by the family of Mr. Go, a longtime Duterte aide.
The AI-generated video was released days after Mr. Trillanes appeared before the Senate, showing an International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant for Mr. Duterte’s ally, Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, who is currently evading arrest.
Impeachment of Mr. Duterte: The video also went viral during the impeachment proceedings against Vice President Duterte. Vice President Duterte faces charges including misappropriation of public funds, illegal accumulation of wealth, and making death threats against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
Duterte has been impeached twice by the House of Representatives. She is scheduled to face her impeachment trial in the Senate on July 6.
Previous fact checks: Rappler previously fact-checked similar false claims regarding the impeachment of Trillanes and Duterte.
– Angelie Kay Abelinde/Rappler.com
Angelee Kaye Abelinde is a student journalist based in Naga City and a graduate of Rappler’s Aries Rufo Journalism Fellowship 2024.
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