Spokesperson of the Philippine government’s anti-communist task force, Lorraine Badoy, has been sued in connection with the disinformation campaign for linking a community pantry to communists.

Zena Bernardo, mother of Ana Patricia “Patreng” Non, who put up the Maginhawa community pantry, has filed an 18-page complaint against Badoy in the Office of the Ombudsman on Wednesday seeking her suspension from office urging Ombudsman Samuel Martires to conduct disciplinary proceedings to determine her administrative, civil, and criminal liabilities.

Citing posts by Badoy and the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-Elcac) in April 2021

Bernardo, accompanied by lawyer Antonio La Viña, referred to the April 19 post on the “Peace Philippines” Facebook page alleging that community pantries were “weapons of communists to recruit members”.

The post was shared by NTF-Elcac’s Facebook page and eight other Facebook pages and profiles which, according to Bernardo’s complaint, “like Peace Philippines, either have links to the Philippine National Police, or publish posts, comments and memes similar to the NTF-Elcac’s, or both.”

This came the same month Non launched the community pantry on Maginhawa Street in Quezon City in COVID-19 pandemic.

Bernardo also cited a press statement by Badoy posted on her Facebook page on April 20 describing the community pantry a “modus operandi” of communist groups.

Part of her post went: “Once in a while, stop using the good hearts of Filipinos to deceive and put them in danger.”

At that time, Badoy’s red-tagging of community pantries was criticized and denounced by civic groups, senators and congressmen, local officials like Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte and even Vice President Leni Robredo.

Badoy also said in an interview over SMNI News Channel that Non had “links” to the communist movement.

She added that Badoy’s red-tagging of Non and the community pantry organisers resulted in their “mental and psychological torture and persecution.”

Badoy has, however claimed that “mere labeling of a group as a communist front is not an actual threat to one’s right to life, liberty, and security.”