Actor Enchong Dee slammed Presidential legal counsel Salvador Panelo for his duality on his statements toward the Philippines’ first-ever Olympic gold medalist Hidilyn Diaz.
On twitter, Dee shared a meme comparing Panelo’s recent message for Diaz’s victory and another statement released in 2019.
Jokes on you… never vote for this kind of clown… ever. pic.twitter.com/E9DtIxlLKD
— Enchong Dee (@enchongdee777) July 27, 2021
In 2019, Panelo, the Presidential spokesperson at that time, allegedly announced that Diaz is not entitled to use drugs despite being an athlete so, she got listed as part of the drug list.
Recently, Panelo extended his congratulations to Diaz for bagging the first-ever Olympic gold medal for the country. He also said that Duterte’s administration has always believed in Diaz’s potential of bringing honor to the country.
Dee noted the duality of Panelo with those statements so, he labeled him as a clown and asked the Filipinos not to vote for him this coming election.
Jokes on you… never vote for this kind of clown… ever. pic.twitter.com/E9DtIxlLKD
— Enchong Dee (@enchongdee777) July 27, 2021
There are speculations that Panelo will run for a senatorial position this 2022 election.
As Dee’s post circulates online, a netizen shared a fact-check done by Vera Files that disproves the veracity of the statements posted by Dee.
Accordingly, there were no publications or records to prove that Panelo accused Diaz of being a drug user. Also, when Panelo congratulated Diaz he did not mention Duterte’s administration.
Before winning the first gold medal for the Philippines, Diaz struggled a lot because of a lack of resources. She even appealed to the Government for support before but ended up being criticized by DDS.
Panelo also red-tagged her as they list her as part of the ‘oust Duterte’ matrix.
Despite that, Panelo believes that nothing is wrong with listing her in the matrix, and he does not owe an apology to Diaz.
“Madali mag-apologize kung mali ang ginawa mo, pero kung wala ka namang ginawa… ano bang ginawa ko? I just presented the matrix upon the instructions of the President. Wala naman ako kinalaman [sa matrix]
“You cannot apologize for something you have not committed.”
Panelo said that he is sorry for hurting Diaz’s feelings, but will not be sorry about her inclusion in the said matrix.