Thursday, October 01, 2009

Mikey refutes controversial pic on Facebook

fter having had to defend himself over alleged irregularities concerning his Statement of Assets and Liabilities or SALN, presidential son Mikey Arroyo is embroiled in another controversy involving a picture posted on Facebook that purportedly shows him buying liquor in the aftermath of typhoon "Ondoy."

The picture of a man hunched over a rack of alcoholic drinks was captioned: "Was buying food for keeps... then we saw Mikey Arroyo in Rustan's Liquor Section asking the salesman for a brand of hard alcoholic drink. Effin Crazy! Just a few kilometers away from Katipunan, people are needing [sic] help for search and rescue, and there he was buying bottles of alcohol. See for yourself and tell me what you think."

The negative responses it garnered were so immediate and widespread that the person who uploaded the picture removed it, citing concerns over "safety and security."

Copies of the picture, however, could still be accessed through blogs and web-based networking sites such as Twitter.

Reacting on the controversy, Arroyo, a former action star and comedian turned congressman, refuted its accuracy, saying, "How could I be at Rustan's on Katipunan Avenue at the height of Ondoy when Katipunan was impassable at that time?"

According to Arroyo, he was in MalacaƱang with his family trying to mobilize rescue and relief operations.

"This is another malicious attack on my person. It is so depressing," he bewailed.

Arroyo added: "It's so unfortunate that while we were so busy then trying to help ease the sufferings of our kababayan, some people had the guts and the temerity to peddle malicious innuendos at the expense of others."

Arroyo now believes Facebook should be "regulated" as it is predisposed to misuse.

"Facebook is easily susceptible to abuses as people can easily hide their identities," he stressed.

Arroyo didn't say, however, how he proposes to go about "regulating" the site, which claims to have over 65 million users worldwide.

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