Social media personality Ferdinand dela Merced, popularly known as the Philippine Looper, confirmed that his Facebook page was mass-reported, which he said resulted in restrictions imposed by Meta.
Dela Merced announced that he has created a new Facebook page after his original account—previously followed by more than one million users—lost visibility due to the restriction. The new page, he said, will serve as a temporary platform while he works on recovering his main account.
“Habang inaayos ko yung original kong page, dito muna ako magpost,” Dela Merced wrote on his new page.
“Ito na nga ang nakakainis, di ka na nga tinanggap ng maayos at pinakain ako pa mawawalan ng page. Simple lang naman ang pagsalubong sakin ng may respeto, hindi pa magawa.”
According to Dela Merced, the mass reporting allegedly followed online backlash over his earlier posts about an incident during an event in Bataraza, Palawan.
He previously claimed that he was neglected and prevented from leaving a gym to eat while a program was ongoing—statements that drew strong criticism from netizens.
“Parang ako pa may kasalanan? Di ko alam ano bang ikinakagalit n’yo? Simpleng respeto lang kailangan ko,” he added. “Paano ka gaganahan sa ginagawa mo kung nauuna ang inggit ng iba. Bitbit ko ang pangalan ng bansa, tapos kayo nagagalit lang? Kunti na lang, mare-recover ko din account ko at ide-delete ko din ’to. Wala magagawa yung report n’yo.”
Dela Merced stressed that he is not after fame but support and respect from those who follow his journey.
“Di ko kailangan ng kasikatan, ang kailangan ko suporta at respeto n’yo,” he said. “Gumawa ako ng YouTube para sa mga nakasuporta sakin at nagbibigay ng respeto, salamat.”
As part of maintaining his online presence, he has also launched a YouTube account where supporters can continue to follow updates about his activities.
The Philippine Looper is currently in Mindoro for what he described as the final leg of his nationwide journey, which involves walking across all 82 provinces of the Philippines as part of a Guinness World Records attempt.
In November, Dela Merced was declared persona non grata by the Negros Oriental provincial government following controversial remarks about the local government. He later clarified that he was not seeking special treatment and only requested a certificate of appearance from the Dumaguete local government, which he said was part of the documentation for his record attempt.
Despite issuing a public apology, many residents and officials at the time criticized his comments as insensitive, especially as the province was dealing with severe conditions brought about by a typhoon.
As of this writing, Dela Merced continues his walk from Batanes to Jolo, maintaining that no Filipino has yet officially completed the feat he is attempting.