EDITORIAL - Swift action

It’s good to know that the government is capable of quickly apprehending persons suspected of involvement in cyber crimes. Last month, the National Bureau of Investigation arrested Rodel Jayme, administrator of the website metrobalita.net, where videos linking President Duterte, members of his family and close friends to the illegal drug trade were first posted and shared.

The President and his relatives have strongly denied the accusations in the “Ang Totoong Narcolist” videos, which also imputed corruption and unexplained wealth. He has also indicated that it could be the handiwork of the opposition. Officials vowed that those behind the video would be unmasked. This week Jayme was slapped with charges of inciting to sedition in relation to the Cybercrime Prevention Act. 

Government prosecutors have yet to establish whether Jayme himself created and uploaded the videos. The series featured a hooded man with his face in the shadows named Bikoy, who accused the President and his family of receiving payoffs from a drug ring called the Davao Group. In the latest installment of the videos last month, Bikoy named several businessmen and politicians allegedly belonging to a Bicol-based drug trafficking ring called the Quadrangle Group. If the story is false, those named could also file criminal complaints for cyber libel.

Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra ordered the NBI to trace the source of the videos on April 17, Holy Wednesday. On April 30, Jayme was arrested at his Parañaque home. That was impressively quick action for the government, in a probe that Guevarra said he initiated on his own. 

The NBI should be able to display the same zeal and efficiency in cases involving other individuals. There is so much fake news and scurrilous information being spread in cyberspace these days, and the NBI could be swamped, so it can start with other prominent public officials. Vice President Leni Robredo, for example, has openly complained about what she describes as fake stories circulating since 2016 in cyberspace maligning her.  

Every person deserves protection from cyber attacks. The law must apply to all; selective justice is injustice. The arrest of Jayme should serve as a template for responding swiftly to complaints against anyone using cyberspace for maligning others.