House, DICT: No summon issued for Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg

MANILA – The House of Representatives and the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) have clarified that Congress never issued a call for Meta Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg to appear before the plenary.

The clarification was delivered during the House budget deliberations by DICT budget sponsor Rep. Brian Poe Llamanzares, following questions raised by Majority Leader and Ilocos Norte 1st District Representative Ferdinand Alexander Marcos.

Marcos noted that recent publications suggested the House, alongside the DICT, had pushed for Zuckerberg’s appearance.

“Over the last few days, I have seen numerous publications that stated that the House, whether it be in the committee or otherwise, called upon Mark Zuckerberg to appear before the House of Representatives. And I understand during my time researching more, I saw that DICT was part of that initiative and part of that push. So I would just like to clarify, did the House of Representatives have any role in actually calling upon the appearance of Mark Zuckerberg?” Marcos asked.

Addressing the plenary, Llamanzares stated, “the House did not call upon Mark Zuckerberg or Meta to appear before plenary, just to clarify. And also… for the record, Secretary Aguda apologizes for any misunderstanding or miscommunication regarding the statement that DICT had first posted.”

Llamanzares added that the DICT immediately removed its initial post and presented the agency’s updated official statement on the floor.

“In fact, immediately after, DICT took down that post and with the indulgence of my colleagues here on the floor, I’d like to read for the record the updated statement of the DICT,” he explained.

The updated DICT statement confirmed that no House resolution was issued directing or inviting Meta or its CEO to appear, noting that budget deliberations were deferred pending the submission of additional information and documents requested by House members.

“The DICT confirms that no House resolution was issued directing or inviting META or its Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg to appear before the House in relation to the hearing. The Department’s budget deliberations were deferred pending the submission of additional information and documents requested by members of the House,” Llmamanzares read.

Llamanzares added that the department stated it is currently consolidating these requirements to present during the continuation of the hearings.

Expressing gratitude for the prompt response, Majority Leader Marcos stated, “first of all, we would like, while we in the House and myself would like to thank the DICT for the clarification and for doing so at such, so swiftly and so quickly. And of course, to the good sponsor for reading out the statement of the DICT so at least it is on record in the House.”

Aside from the clarification regarding Meta, the DICT budget discussions covered several critical updates concerning online safety, digital infrastructure, and recent enforcement actions.

Llamanzares said that the DICT continues its engagement with Meta and other platforms, having issued a show-cause order to Meta USA.

The National Privacy Commission (NPC) has likewise raised concerns regarding platform safeguards and AI-generated or related content.

Furthermore, the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC) led discussions with Reddit, Discord, and Roblox, resulting in commitments to establish a Philippine presence to strengthen government accountability and legal jurisdiction.

Llamanzares also said that Secretary Henry Aguda assured him that the DICT is actively studying international best practices and has requested a coordination and accomplishments report from Meta for 2025 to 2026.

Llamanzares shared a recent incident where the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and CICC intervened in a case involving a 15-year-old student in General Mariano Alvarez, Cavite, who was allegedly linked to a network discussing mass school shootings.

He said that authorities recovered a playing card reading, “Commit Suicide and Commit Mass Shooting.”

“This resulted in the voluntary surrender of his phone for forensic examination and his referral to the MSWDO for monitoring and psychological assessment,” Llamanzares explained.

The DICT emphasized its ongoing collaboration with Congress, government agencies, technology platforms, and stakeholders to enhance cybersecurity, promote platform accountability, and safeguard Filipino users, particularly children and young people, while encouraging the public and media to rely on official proceedings to prevent misinformation.