ALLAN THE MAN

MANILA, Philippines - Senate Majority Leader Vicente Sotto III filed and later withdrew a bill seeking to abolish the much-assailed libel provision in Cybercrime Prevention Act - in deference, supposedly, to the sentiments of President Aquino.

Sotto said he filed a bill last Friday to remove libel from the Cybercrime law, but when he heard the statement of President Benigno Aquino III on the said provision, he opted to withdraw the measure.

Sen. Tito Sotto's emotional story on the Senate floor last Monday about the death of his son may have come from his heart, but at least one lengthy passage from his speech came from someone else's blog.

Sotto's description of the purported ill effects of birth control pills on unborn children was lifted nearly word for word from the blog of "Sarah, the healthy home economist," a US-based writer who also opposes vaccines for children and offers recipes for goodies like grain-free pumpkin cookies.

Sotto did not attribute any of his words or research to "Sarah, the healthy home economist," whose disclaimer cautions that "the nutritional and other information on this website are not intended to be and do not constitute health care or medical advice.

The plagiarism was first exposed by Alfredo Melgar on the blog Filipino freethinkers.

Here is a comparison of Sotto’s speech and Sarah’s blog: