Ces Oreña-Drilon trends on Twitter for Marcos Jr.'s 'dedma' call out, Domagoso's 'madam moderator' honorific, and her post-debate sigh

When it was Marcos Jr.'s turn, the moderator made it a point to highlight how he ignored Comelec's invitation. Like the first Comelec presidential debates last March 19, only the dictator's son and namesake was a no-show in the second one.

"Susunod dapat ay si former senator Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos Jr.," Oreña-Drilon said, as the camera shows the audience an empty podium denoting Marcos Jr.'s absence. "Pero hanggang ngayon, dedma pa rin siya sa imbitasyon ng Comelec."

"Dedma" is a Filipino slang for feigning ignorance or snobbing, which is also a shorthand for the transliteration of the local expression "patay-malisya" or "dead malice."

Twitter user @itscrystal_gail commended Oreña-Drilon for commenting on his non-attendance. "Sana masarap ulam ni Ms. Ces Drilon!" the tweet read. "It's not about giving a shade, but being real."

User @Hammiewave said Oreña-Drilon has "NO CHILL MARE!" for the act.

During the debates proper, many netizens also took notice of how candidate Isko Moreno Domagoso kept addressing Oreña-Drilon as "madam moderator" over the course of the three-hour event.

Twitter user @kachowchs shared a photo of a person drinking from a colossal wine glass as its contents spill over his face and upper body.

take a shot everytime you hear ‘thank you madam moderator’ and ‘sa awa ng diyos’ #PiliPinasDebates2022 pic.twitter.com/0oXUr64KBU

— ysa (@kachowchs) April 3, 2022

"take a shot everytime you hear ‘thank you madam moderator’ and ‘sa awa ng diyos,'" the tweet read.

User @yeonshirai, meanwhile, shared a screenshot of Oreña-Drilon during the debates, which supposedly captures her displeased look toward the Manila mayor's honorific.

isko: “thank you madam moderator ces drilon”

ces drilon: pic.twitter.com/Oh8hslW54l

— yanna (@yeonshirai) April 3, 2022

In a more critical approach, Kontra Daya convenor Danilo Arao said Domagoso's constant use of "madam moderator" is just a "filler introduction" to gather one's thoughts in an impromptu response.

DEBATE TACTIC: "Thank you, madam moderator Ces" is just a filler introduction as a speaker quickly gathers one's thoughts in an impromptu response. This is similar to sentences like "Thank you for that wonderful question."

— Danilo Arao (@dannyarao) April 3, 2022

"This is similar to sentences like 'Thank you for that wonderful question,'" Arao wrote.

Oreña-Drilon also caught the attention of netizens with how she unknowingly let out a huge sigh just as the program was done streaming.

At the 2:59:09 mark of the livestream of Vote Pilipinas when the names of the program's sponsors are being mentioned, Oreña-Drilon can be heard thanking some people, with a voice of a man commending her for a job well done in moderating the event.

"Ay talaga ba?" she replied, "Salamat."

A few moments later, out of the blue, Oreña-Drilon groans, seemingly unaware that her microphone is still turned on. She then chuckles afterward.

"Ces drilon’s exasperated audible sigh at the end is something i relate to very deeply," user @lolongyap said.

"CES DRILON NAKA ON PA PO MIC MO HAHAHAHHAA," @Blink8_0 wrote.

The April 3 event dealt with foreign relations, government accountability, and safety and security.

The hashtag #PiliPinasDebates2022 has become a trending topic on Twitter. According to Twitter trends tracker trends24, there are over 74,000 tweets bearing the hashtag, as of this writing.

There are also over 3,000 tweets about Oreña-Drilon.