MANILA—A peculiar location tag that looks to mock the country has apparently started to appear on some social media sites.

"Philippines, Province of China" and "North Philippines: Province of China" became location options on Facebook and Instagram, drawing ire from users, who woke up Saturday with the geotags activated on both platforms.

More than 9,000 people have checked in the location "Philippines, Province of China" on Facebook at the time this story was posted.

ICYMI: Social media platforms Facebook and Instagram now include "Philippines, Province of China" as a tagged location. pic.twitter.com/lE82I8EZLk

— Job Manahan (@jobmanahan) May 16, 2020

Senator Risa Hontiveros slammed the creation of the geotag, saying it should be taken seriously even if some users treated it as a joke.

Hontiveros said the sound of the phrases alone is "infuriating."

"Katunog siya ng mga mangingisda nating tinataboy mula sa sarili nating mga karagatan. Katunog siya ng propagandang Wow China na ini-ere sa sarili nating radio station," the senator said.

Kahit “biro” pa itong Philippines Province of China na geotag, wag nating hayaang ma-normalize ito. Let’s mass report!

I-tap at i-hold ang location tapos pindutin ang “not a public space” para matanggal ito.

Let's go! We’re not a province of China. Not now, not ever! 🇵🇭 pic.twitter.com/HKy1i36GSR

— risa hontiveros (@risahontiveros) May 16, 2020

Meanwhile, Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. said he doesn't think Chinese citizens will take the tags seriously, but he promised there'll be consequences if they do.

You're giving it importance. Chinese are too smart to believe that crap; any of them tries coming over without a visa from me and he'll be detained and sent back where he came from at his own expense. At the rate you're all going they will have 110 million check-ins. https://t.co/S3NzaVWMa4

— Teddy Locsin Jr. (@teddyboylocsin) May 16, 2020

'Geotag should be mass reported'

Hontiveros urged the public to mass report the location tag, saying it should not be normalized.

"Hindi tayo Province of China! Never were and never will be!" she said. "Kailangan natin ngayon lakasan ang tapang ng ating pagka-Pilipino."

The way Facebook works, users can freely create a new location mark through the social media site's mobile application. A user just needs to click "add location" on the post, type a new location, scroll down and click "add a new place."

Once a user adds a new place, one can include a category and its exact location.

The tag "Philippines, Province of China" is located in Manila, for example.. "North Philippines, Province of China," meanwhile, is a page with 54 likes and 171 check-ins.

Just last week, critics fumed at "Wow China," a segment promoting China that appeared in the Philippine government's AM radio station.

• PH broadcasting service defends airing of 'non-political' Wow China show

It airs on state-owned Radyo Pilipinas, the flagship AM radio station of the Philippine Broadcasting Service, which is under the Presidential Communications Operations Office.

“Wow China,” according to its Facebook page, is a “cultural-feature program that mainly focuses on China’s and Philippines’ tradition, culture and history and its differences and similarities.”