Content analysis indicates China meddling in Philippine polls by 'fabricating' pro-Duterte trend

By Pacific Island Times News Staff

A content analysis by an India-based think tank indicated that China-affiliated social media accounts accelerated their shady campaign over the past weeks, deploying “troll farms" to manipulate public opinion and “fabricating a pro-Duterte narrative” amid Monday's Philippine elections.

“The election is not only important for the Philippines but also for its neighboring countries, especially China,” Thinkfi said in a report released Sunday on the eve of the Philippines’ midterm elections.

Political observers view this year’s election as a barometer for public sentiment ahead of the 2028 presidential race.

Filipino voters are casting their votes for 12 seats in the 24-seat Senate and 317 seats in the House of Representatives. The incoming Senate will inherit the task of deciding on the ouster of Vice President Sara Duterte, who faces four impeachment complaints approved by the lower house.

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos last month ordered an investigation into China’s alleged interference in the country’s elections following a warning from intelligence officials that communist government-sponsored "keyboard warriors" were orchestrating social media trends.

Analysts argue that China is seeking to exploit fractures in domestic politics.

Marcos and Sara Duterte ran as a team in 2022 but have since been at odds over personal and policy conflicts. Their feud has escalated following the arrest of the vice president's father, former president Rodrigo Duterte.

The former president was arrested by the Philippine National Police and the Interpol in March to face trial before the International Criminal Court, where he was charged with crimes against humanity related to his brutal war on drugs.

Unlike Marcos, who has been vocal about his indignation over Chinese attacks in the South China Sea, Rodrigo Duterte was a darling of China. The former leader allied with the communist nation during his term, after announcing his “separation from the United States."

Beijing has denied interfering in Philippine elections, but Thinkfi said its analysis of social media content established a link between China and pro-Duterte posts.

The Indian think tank said China manufactured “a sympathetic narrative toward Duterte” by using social media influencers, bot accounts and state media, specifically targeting overseas Filipino workers.

The campaign on X and Instagram, which started on March 11 and peaked on March 16, used seven different hashtags: #ProtectDuterte, #WeStandForPRRD, #BringHimHome, #BringPRRDHome, #GodSaveThePhilippines, #BringDuterteBackHome and #MarcosTraitor.

“Overall, 2,491 tweets done by 580 unique users and 1,498 Instagram posts done by 934 unique users were analyzed between March 11 and 19,” Thinkfi said. “We saw multiple bot behaviors from these accounts. Some were only retweeting posts, some were only replying and a few with a high number of followers (only 25 accounts with more than 5,000 followers) actually posting tweets to get engagement.”

Data analysts found that almost all accounts that created and shared pro-Duterte posts had a history of posting pro-Chinese content.

Thinkfi noted a dubious account under “Philippines Dragon Media,” which posted content criticizing Duterte’s arrest and seeking to “gather sympathy” for the former president.

Thinkfi traced the Philippines Dragon Media website to one Demry Cheng, who is listed as the company's president.

"PDM aspires to become 'righteous and credible' Chinese online media that the Chinese community in the Philippines can rely on at any time,” Thinkfi said. “Also, we found a telegram channel of PDM that posts only on weekdays and that too in working hours of 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (Beijing time), unlike normal media houses, which do a 24/7 coverage getting most viewership on the weekends.”

"The goal? To weaponize public opinion and create sympathy for Duterte, using the volume of fake support to drown out real criticism," Thinkfi said. "While the political spectacle continues to dominate, the real question is, how long can they keep pushing the illusion and maintain this facade before it finally unravels?”

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