At the height of Bagyong Ondoy, someone posted a picture of Mikey Arroyo "allegedly" buying liquor in Rustans Supermarket in Katipunan. The caption said that while people were falling victim to Bagyong Ondoy, Mikey Arroyo was oblivious to everything and was buying liquor in Rustans Supermarket. Within minutes, such picture was "shared" in the FaceBook community and thousands and thousands of people were reacting violently to it.
According to Inquirer.net, Mikey Arroyo, on Tuesday, pushed for tighter regulation of FaceBook, after he claimed to be a victim of "malicious attack" by one of its members.
The original post in FaceBook had the following caption: "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 help for search and rescue, and there he was buying bottles of alcohol. See for yourself and tell me what you think.”
Mikey Arroyo claimed that he was not anywhere near Katipunan on Saturday and that he was in Malacanang, helping out in the relief operations for the victims of Bagyong Ondoy. He said that he could not have been in Katipunan for it was impossible for any cars to pass through that area during the height of the storm. Thus, Mikey lashed out against his critics and said that FaceBook and other social networking sites should be regulated. He even went as far to insinuate that bloggers and FaceBook users were not helping in any way in the relief operations.
I think Mikey Arroyo is forgetting the fact that one of the main reasons why youth volunteerism was so high, and is still so high, is precisely because of these online social networks, primarily FaceBook. It is because of the popularity of the Internet and FaceBook that many people were able to know what they can do to help not just here in the Philippines but abroad as well. More than that, people were able to post their concerns regarding their situation or ask about updates of the storm. People were posting videos to the extent that looking at the news was no longer as necessary and people were posting hotline numbers as well as the situation of their loved ones in certain areas so that others could help.
I am aware of the fact that FaceBook and other social networking sites may be and is a breeding ground for malicious attacks as well as identity theft (take the Filipina OFW who "allegedly" posted a maliciou comment in FaceBook at the height of Bagyong Ondoy). But yeah right Mikey, let me see you attempt to regulate it!
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An FYI for Mikey Arroyo: hundreds of people would have been unable to ask for help, and those willing to assist would not have been able to reach them, if not for social networking media like Facebook. Amidst all the gossip and idle rants, in the face of a crisis like Ondoy, reposted appeals for relief assistance and calls for donations crowd our online Walls. I myself coordinated with a friend in urgent need of clothes and drinking water after the flood, and another who was involved in relief operations in the same area, via Facebook and Chikka. They were able to get in touch with each other, and help was given and received, with the aid of technology. If Mikey thinks that bloggers and FB users have nothing better to do than spread rumors, he'd better wake up and say hello to the 21st century.
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