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Multiple social media posts in the Philippines have shared a claim that a professor at the country's top university was fired for remarks she made in May 2022 about the nation's president-elect and his running mate. However, the claim is false; the professor told AFP that she is still employed by the university. As of June 29, the lecturer, now on sabbatical, remains a member of the university faculty. The institution said she will return in 2023. The claim was shared on YouTube here on May 27, 2022, and has been viewed more than 500 times. The eight-minute 39-second clip features a thumbnail that shows a photo collage of Jean Encinas-Franco , associate professor of political science at the University of the Philippines (UP), the country's president-elect Ferdinand Marcos Jr, his running mate Sara Duterte and the current Vice President Leni Robredo. The Tagalog-language caption of the clip translates to English as: JUST IN: OH NO SHE WAS REMOVED! U.P. PROF WAS IMMEDIATELY FIRED; SHAMED BY ATTY BRUCE AFTER BELITTLING SARA-BBM. SARA-BBM refers to Sara Duterte and Marcos Jr, who is commonly referred to as Bongbong Marcos, while Atty Bruce is the pro-Duterte lawyer Bruce Rivera. Screenshot of the misleading video clip, taken on June 25, 2022 Marcos Jr won a landslide victory in the Philippines' latest presidential election on May 11, beating his nearest rival, Robredo. The claim began to circulate after Encinas-Franco was ridiculed online ( here , here , here and here ) for comments she made while analysing the election results on local network ABS-CBN on May 11. During the broadcast, Encinas-Franco said: Marcos Jr and Sara may have won the elections, but it's actually Leni and Kiko [vice presidential candidate Francis Pangilinan] who have captured the hearts and minds, especially the young people who have supported them. When asked about what to expect from the Marcos presidency, she said: You know, that's a good question because I'm not really sure. We haven't seen them give details about this during their campaign so good luck to the Philippines. Good luck. The claim that Encinas-Franco was fired was also shared in a blog and on Facebook here and here . Comments suggest some social media users had been misled. It's right to terminate professors, and even students, who show bad manners and wrong conduct, one user wrote. We should remove those who are anti-government from the government services, said another. UP is a publicly funded institution. However, the claim is false. University 'denounces the lies' Encinas-Franco said she was not fired from the university. I am still with UP, she told AFP on June 28. As of June 29, the university's website lists Encinas-Franco as an associate professor and a regular faculty member but states that she is currently on sabbatical. Maria Angelica Abad, the university's assistant vice president for public affairs, said that Encinas-Franco will return from her break in 2023. Dr. Franco was not fired and remains a member of the faculty of the UP Diliman Dept. of Political Science, Abad told AFP on June 27, 2022 . Separately, the university published a statement on June 3, dismissing the claim. Dr. Encinas-Franco is a respected member of the Department of Political Science. She has not been removed from service, read the statement from the executive board of UP's College of Social Sciences and Philosophy. [The] Executive Board denounces the lies being circulated online to discredit Dr. Encinas-Franco and the harassment directed at her and her family through social media. The claim was also debunked by local media outlets ABS-CBN and Rappler .
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