A spokesman for Philippine presidential race front-runner Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said Tuesday that his Facebook account was suspended the previous day for not following the company's community standards.
The suspension came as Meta Platforms Inc., the operator of Facebook, said it has removed over 400 accounts, pages and groups in the Philippines that violated their community standards, calling their content "harmful" to the May 9 Philippine presidential election.
But the spokesman, Vic Rodriguez, said in a statement that Meta suspended his account, claiming, "This action is censorship of the highest degree."
Marcos Jr.'s election campaigners have been accused by experts and civil groups of spreading lies online to rewrite the history of atrocities committed by his father's authoritarian regime from 1965 to 1986 to boost support for Marcos.
Earlier this month, Meta also flagged a Facebook post by National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon Jr. and deleted posts by state media Philippine News Agency, prompting Sen. Ramon Revilla Jr. to demand an explanation from Meta's Philippines branch.
In a statement released Tuesday, Revilla said that Meta went "overboard" and insinuated partisan politics influenced its actions.
On April 6, Meta said it has developed stronger policies against hate speech and misinformation to "help keep people safe during the upcoming Philippine general election."
Marcos Jr., the son and namesake of the late dictator, and Vice President and opposition leader Leni Robredo are top contenders in the race to succeed President Rodrigo Duterte, whose single six-year term ends on June 30.
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