Last Tuesday-Manila, September 3, Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo says that he will

threaten to sue Rappler and Inquirer.net because he said that he was being humiliated and the articles
being released about him sought to discredit and disrespect him. Panelo was one of the lawyers of
Sanchez in 1993 rape-slay case of two students from UP-Los Baños. This case is currently on-going and
more opinions relating to this case are extracted each day.

"Those articles are reeking not only with irresponsibility but with malice and it is libelous in nature
because it imputes an act to discredit me in public and to tarnish my honor," stated by Panelo in a quick
interview in Malacañang last Tuesday.

However the following day, NUJP–The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines said that
Panelo’s threat only defined that cyber libel laws are "used as weapons wielded by the powerful to exact
revenge and to punish than a legal remedy for justice." NUJP also described Panelo as the stereotyped
government officials who are "incapable of thinking beyond their imagined hurt and fail to see that the
reports are not all about them.".

I think that this case wasn’t thought through by the Prosecutor (Panelo) whom threatened to sue
something which he claimed to humiliate his dignity. The internet were trying to give off their opinions
and maybe the words they used may not be appropriate but it might be true for Panelo to react. I think
Panelo is trying to use his power to dominate the court about it and I think the court should actually
thank the articles for informing the internet and public that some laws are abused by some powerful
people especially those in the government. And as I read through the articles, it should be appreciated
more for warning and informing the government officials like Panelo to be careful of releasing such
conducts. And as NUJP also stated "If protecting his honor is what Panelo is really after, he should refrain
from carrying out his threat against Rappler and Inquirer.net. Magnanimity is key. Honor is, after all, like
a nice shirt seen by others on the wearer, not a sword wielded harshly by the bearer."