Rappler reporter banned from entire Malacañang complex

After only being banned from the Malacañang Palace, Rappler reporter Pia Ranada said last night that she is now banned from the entire complex.

According to Rappler, Presidential Communications Undersecretary Mia Reyes told Ranada by phone about this latest development yesterday night.

Apart from the presidential palace, the Malacañang complex also houses the office of the Department of Budget and Management, the office of the executive secretary, and the office of the president, which includes the presidential management staff.

READ: Rappler banned from covering Palace after reporter was barred from entering Malacañang this morning

When asked by reporters this afternoon to explain the ban on Ranada, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said in Tagalog: “If your guest is rude to you in your own home, can you be blamed for making the rude visitor leave? It’s the same with the president…What happened here is, Rappler, Pia, was allowed into the home of the President because Malacañang is the home of the President. Then the President got offended.”

While Roque used Randa’s behavior to justify the ban, the administration previously said that banning Ranada from entering Malacanñang was due to Rappler’s case at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for allegedly violating foreign ownership laws of mass media.

Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea said Rappler will need to get a temporary restraining order (TRO) on the decision, in order to be accredited to cover the Palace. This was after Roque said that Ranada would be allowed to cover the palace pending the decision of the SEC.

READ: Securities and Exchange Commission revokes news website Rappler’s registration

A video posted by Rappler on Facebook on Tuesday shows Ranada and a TV reporter questioning a PSG guard about where he got orders to bar her from entering Malacañang.

PSG Commander Brigadier General Lope Dagoy commented on this incident during an interview with Communications Assistant Secretary Mocha Uson on Tuesday and said that Ranada was rude and should be thankful the guard did not hurt her.

“Don’t do that, he was just following orders. Be thankful he did not hurt you with the rudeness you showed,” Dagoy said in Tagalog.

But Rappler is not backing down.

“We denounce the threat made by the commander of the Presidential Security Group against Rappler and its Malacañang reporter Pia Ranada,” Rappler said in a statement last night.

“Dagoy’s statement is conduct unbecoming of an officer and a gentleman, coming as it did from a soldier who took his oath to defend civilians, who stands closest to the seat of power, and who serves an organization that has shown, time and again, its respect for and appreciation of civilian institutions such as Rappler,” it added.

Meanwhile, the Malacañang Press Corps, an organization independent of the Office of the President, said Ranada would remain a member until a final decision is made on Rappler’s SEC case.