Libel on Instagram? Robin files suit

Actor Robin Padilla has cried foul against a dummy Twitter account that accused him of an election- related violation which he said he never committed.

In a letter to the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), Padilla accused Twitter user @ krizzy_ kalerqui of defaming him online and urged the agency to trace the user.

The Twitter user accused Padilla of violating election laws after the latter posted a photo showing a ballot with shaded circles that correspond

to the name of Davao City mayor and presidential frontrunner Rodrigo Duterte and to party-list Anak Mindanao (AMIN).

The @ krizzy_ kalerqui account tweeted a reaction saying, “This is a clear violation of election law! Throw him in jail as well. NO ONE IS ABOVE THE LAW!” last May 9, election day.

The tweet included the photo, which Padilla first posted on his Instagram account around 10 a.m. of May 9.

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) classifies taking photos of the official ballot an election offense, as it might be used for vote-buying.

A succeeding tweet said, Padilla “deleted (the photo) after his attention was called.”

But Rudolf Jurado, Padilla’s lawyer, said the ballot “was just a sample ballot” since his client is no longer allowed to vote due to a previous conviction for illegal possession of firearms and ammunition. The actor was pardoned in 1998.

“He is also not a registered voter due to his previous conviction in 1994,” he added. “He cannot go to a precinct, and he cannot vote obviously.”

Jurado stressed that Padilla “just wanted to express his sentiment on the election, but my client never committed any offense.”

The lawyer stressed that the @ krizzy-kalerqui tweets damaged Padilla’s image and reputation and that some of the “products he is endorsing were asking him about it.”

He refused to say whether the product owners would cancel Padilla’s endorsement contracts.

Jurado said Padilla would soon file an affidavit and an additional list of netizens who also “defamed Padilla online.”

NBI- Cybercrime Division chief Roland Aguto Jr. said the agency could easily establish the real identity of @

krizzy_kalerqui and charge that person for online libel, which carries a penalty of over six years.