Two Capitol stalwarts slammed the news story that saw print in a media outlet and was aired in a newscast of a radio station regarding the alleged defection of a certain Boy Quirog, who is allegedly a former supporter of Gov. Arthur Yap and now working in side of Rep. Erico Aristotle Aumentado.

Provincial administrator Kathyrin Pioquinto and provincial agriculturist Liza Quirog slammed the media outlet, which operates a newspaper and a radio station, regarding the news story on the alleged defection of Boy Quirog. (see related story on page 1)

Pioquinto described the news item as part of the “April Fool’s Day edition of The Bohol Chronicle.”

The provincial administrator said: “It is ironic that I have been working for 9 years as chief of staff in Congress and almost 3 years as Bohol’s provincial administrator under Gov. Art Yap yet  I do not  even know Boy Quirog personally.”

“In my almost 12 years of working as Gov. Art’s deputy, I do not remember ever meeting this alleged leader. However, I have heard of him and he has always been identified as a rabid attack dog spreading lies about the governor,” Yap’s top lieutenant said in a Facebook post.

She then went on the offensive against the media outlet: “This media [outlet] (who gives the word a bad name) has repeatedly  and willfully violated Section 4 of its franchise under RA [Republic Act] 11352 by the dissemination of deliberately false information or willful misrepresentation, to the detriment of the public interest.”

Pioquinto then gave a suggestion to the media outlet: “Please change your name to ‘The Bohol Fantasies’  and your motto to – ‘Everyday is April Fool’s Day!’

She concluded the post by saying: “News is defined as ‘newly received or noteworthy information, especially about recent or important events.’ (Oxford languages) The articles you call ‘news’ are getting more and more fictitious and malicious everyday! Bohol has had enough disasters in the last decade; please stop trying to make your media another one!”

On the other hand, Liza Quirog provided information about Boy Quirog, the person involved in the news story, in her own Facebook account.

“Si BOY QUIROG dugay na nga wala sa grupo ni [Gov.] Art Yap segun sa akong nahibaw-an. Adto pang 2016 elections wala na siya motrabaho ubos ni Yap,” Liza Quirog wrote on Facebook.

She added, “Nahibaw [ani] si BONI QUIROG [nga] akong bana ug igsuon ni Boy Quirog. Nahibaw ko kay kami ni Boy Quirog ang kauban ug trabaho sa-una.”

Liza Quirog continued by posting on her FB account: “This is not news. This is old information, presented by Bohol Chronicle and dyRD as news perhaps for propaganda purposes,” she quipped.

Liza Quirog ended her Facebook post by saying: “Beware of Media Outlets being used as propaganda machines by politicians.”