FACT CHECK: Photo of Duterte ‘steel statue’ is AI-generated

This is AI generated summarization, which may have errors. For context, always refer to the full article.

Many Filipinos praised the ‘statue’ as a symbol of the “strong affection of millions of Filipino people” for the detained former president

Claim: A photo shows a statue of detained former president Rodrigo Duterte, allegedly made of steel.

Rating: FALSE

Why we fact-checked this: The Facebook post containing the claim has 8,700 reactions, 253 shares, and 856 comments as of writing.

Caption in the post states: “Art made of steel.”

Many Filipinos believed the statue is real, leaving comments expressing admiration such as, “This steel structure of Tatay Digong reflects the strong affection of millions of Filipino people. If you are not one of them, then you missed to appreciate the good things he has done for us.”

The facts: The AI detection tool Sight Engine analyzed the image and found it to be 99% likely AI-generated, with a 99% probability of being produced using generative AI. It also showed a 97% match with diffusion-based models like Imagen.

There are no official announcements from any government agency or authoritative source confirming the supposed existence of such a statue. Additionally, no credible local or international media outlets have reported on its creation, construction, or unveiling. The circulating post only shows an AI-generated image and offers no verifiable evidence to support the claim.

Monument joke: The image likely references a joke Duterte made during a speech to overseas Filipino workers in Hong Kong. While talking about a possible arrest by the International Criminal Court (ICC), he joked that if he ever got out of jail, people should chip in $5 or $10 to build a statue of him next to Jose Rizal. 

As of May 2025, there are no confirmed plans, announcements, or efforts to build such a monument.

Mayor behind bars: Duterte has been detained at Scheveningen Prison in The Hague since March 11, following his arrest in the Philippines on charges of crimes against humanity related to his administration’s controversial drug war. He is scheduled to appear for a confirmation of charges hearing on September 23, which will decide if there is enough evidence to proceed to trial.

Despite his detention, Duterte was proclaimed mayor of Davao City after winning the 2025 midterm elections.

Debunked: Rappler has debunked several AI-generated images depicting statues and monuments allegedly honoring the detained ex-president:

• FACT CHECK: Photo of Duterte ‘CD statue’ is AI-generated
• .FACT CHECK: Photo of Duterte ‘fishnet statue’ is AI-generated
• FACT CHECK: Photo of Duterte ‘Coca-Cola statue’ in the Netherlands is AI-generated
• FACT CHECK: Photo of ‘Arab gold’ Duterte statue is AI-generated
• FACT CHECK: Image of Jackie Chan sculpting Duterte statue is AI-generated
• FACT CHECK: Photo of Duterte ‘national hero’ statue is AI-generated
• FACT CHECK: Duterte’s monument photo is AI-generated

– Marjuice Destinado/Rappler.com

Marjuice Destinado is a Rappler intern. She is also a fact-checker and researcher-writer at Explained PH. A third-year political science student at Cebu Normal University (CNU), she serves as the feature editor of Ang Suga, CNU’s official student publication.

Keep us aware of suspicious Facebook pages, groups, accounts, websites, articles, or photos in your network by contacting us at factcheck@rappler.com. Let us battle disinformation one Fact Check at a time.