DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 25 August) — Former President Rodrigo Duterte and Vice President Sara Duterte issued separate messages on Saturday night and Sunday morning condemning the alleged “abuse of power” in the police operations inside the 30-hectare Kingdom of Jesus Christ compound in Buhangin, as the police on Saturday combed its premises to arrest Pastor Apollo Quiboloy and four other co-accused for alleged large-scale human trafficking, rape, sexual abuse and violence, and child abuse.
Aside from two warrents for criminal charges, Quiboloy, a close friend and spiritual adviser of the Duterte patriarch, also has an arrest warrant after he was cited for contempt by the Senate Committee on Women, Children, Family Relations, and Gender Equality in March for not showing up at the hearing thrice.
On Saturday afternoon, Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa urged Quiboloy to surrender to the police and face the charges against him because he “cannot hide forever.”
“May warrant na galing sa korte (There are already warrants from the court). You cannot hide forever),” said dela Rosa, who served as PNP chief under the Duterte administration from 2016 until April 2018.
“Kung ayaw nya, wala tayong magagawa. It’s his call. Kung pwede, mas maganda sana [If he doesn’t want to (surrender), there’s nothing we can do. It’s his call. If possible, it would be better if he does],” he told reporters at 5:08 p.m. after a 20-minute visit inside the compound.
“Rights trampled”
In a statement posted on his Facebook page at 9:54 p.m. or nearly 18 hours since the start of the police operations, former President Duterte, who was appointed as Administrator of the KOJC properties in March, said the country “has never been in a more tragic state as it is today,” claiming “rights have been trampled upon and our laws, derided.”
Duterte said Torre and the police “forced their way into the Kingdom of Jesus Christ compound which resulted to a violent confrontation and the unfortunate death of one KOJC member and the requiring of immediate medical attention of many others.”
Brig. Gen. Nicolas Torre III led some 2,000 police personnel in the operations that started at around 4 a.m. At the gate of the compound, Torre urged KOJC lead counsel Israelito Torreon to let them in and presented an alias warrant.
Torreon questioned the validity of the warrant but Torres aid “hindi ito ang lugar para tayo ay magdebate. Kung may reklamo ka, maghain ka ng reklamo. Pero ngayon, papasok kami, sa ayaw at sa gusto mo” (this is not the place for debate. If you have a complaint, file a complaint. For now, we will enter, whether or not you like it).
Torreon then let Torre and the police personnel, together with personnel from the Department of Social Welfare and Developemnt, to enter the compound.
Torreon later told reporters 16 KOJC members collapsed while one was proclaimed dead due to the police operations inside the compound.
Major Catherine Dela Rey, spokesperson of the Police Regional Office 11 (PRO 11) said the member succumbed to cardiac arrest.
The Duterte patriarch called on “the remaining decent and patriotic members of our government not to allow themselves to be used and to be abusive and violent in enforcing illegal orders” and called on all Filipinos, “regardless of political persuasion, to offer prayers for peace and justice, and to spare our people of the unwarranted tension brought about by the reign of fear and terror by people sworn to uphold the law and protect the citizens of this country.”
“Again, let us ask this administration how it can guarantee the preservation of the constitutional rights of our fellow Filipinos when even the most fundamental of these rights are being blatantly violated?,” Duterte asked.
“Nawa’y mapatawad ninyo ako”
It took more than 24 hours for Duterte’s daughter Sara to issue a statement, posting it on her social media page at 7:04 a.m. onN Sunday. Sara ran and won the Vice Presidency with Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. as standard bearer of UniTeam. She tendered her resignation as Education Secretary on June 19 (effective July 19).
She described Saturday’s police operations as “gross abuse of police power” in what she described as “takeover of the KOJC compound” that led to “harassment of religious worshipers, the abuse of minors and the unnecessary loss of life.”
“Hindi ko rin maiwasang matanong sa sarili kung ang paggamit ba ng di pangkaraniwang pwersa at di makatarungang pang-aabuso sa ordinaryong Pilipino, upang maipatupad ang naturang warrant of arrest, ay dahil sa ang akusado ay isang kilalang Duterte-supporter (),” Sara said in a statement posted Sunday morning, August 25.
She also apparently took a swipe at president Ferdinand Marcos Jr. , telling KOJC members to “forgive” her for urging them to vote for him.
“Nawa’y mapatawad ninyo ako. (May you forgive me). You deserve better. Filipinos deserve better,” she said.
Mediator
Dela Rosa, who arrived at the KOJC Compoun at 4:45 p.m. on Saturday said he mediated the negotiations between the church and the police, urging both parties, particularly Torreon and Torre to maintain open communications, so that they would have “meeting of the minds.”
He said the KOJC has allowed the police to continue their search, using equipment that is capable of detecting heartbeat up to 20 meters below the surface, but all parties must be represented during the operation.
Dela Rosa said he told the police that they cannot stay inside the compound because it’s a private property of the church.
He said he could not say whether there was excessive use of force.
In mixed Engish and Filipino, he said, “I see the police now. As to the numbers, even if there are so many of them, I cannot say it’s excessive. What’s important is what they’re doing. Even if it’s just 10 people, but they’re committing abuses, that’s excessive,” he said.
Senator Christopher “Bong” Go, a long-time aide of Mayor and later President Rodrigo Duterte before he was elected Senator in 2019, said he supports the police but there should be no “overkill” as it affects the innocent people, especially that they are in a “holy place.”
“My consistent appeal to the PNP is for our police force to remain professional by doing your duty in accordance with the law and in a manner that fulfills your mandate to serve and protect every Filipino!” the senator said in a message posted at 5:17 p.m., shortly after Dela Rosa’s interview with reporters.
“He’s definitely there”
Torre on Saturday led some 2,000 police personnel to serve anew the warrants of arrest against Quiboloy and his four co-accused, Jackielyn Roy, Cresente Canada, Ingrid Canada, and Sylvia Cemañes.
On June 10, police also stormed the KOJC compound to serve the warrants in Quiboloy’s known addresses in Davao City, Samal and Malungon in Sarangani.
The police failed to arrest Quiboloy at the KOJC compound on June 10, in what KOJC members dubbed as “the day of infamy.”
On April 10, the Office of the Senate’s Sergeant at Arms accompanied by the NBI and PNP wend to the KOJC compound, his vacation house on Samal Island and his Prayer Mountain and Glory Mountain, to serve the warrants on Quiboloy but he was not around.
On May 3, the NBI went to Quiboloy’s Prayer Mountain and Glory Mountain but no arrest was done as they could not find him in either.
On Saturday night, Torre told reporters his informants told him that Quiboloy is still there, and insisted they will not leave the compound yet. “He’s definitely there. They’re trying to sneak him out,” he said.
“We just haven’t been able to find him due to their well-planned movements within the compound,” he added.
Torre orderd the police to “not leave the compound unless the co-accused will be found.”
Police arrested Paulene Canada, one of the co-accused, at around 1 p.m. last July 11 at her residence in Emily Homes Subdivision in Barangay Cabantian here, through tips received from informants, and was flown to Manila the next day.
Warrants of arrest were issued against Quiboloy and his co-accused by the Regional Trial Court (RTC)-Branch 12 in Davao City and RTC in Pasig City on April 1 and April 11, respectively.
On May 28, the Supreme Court’s Second Division ordered the transfer of two criminal cases from RTC in Davao to RTC in Quezon City. (Ian Carl Espinosa / MindaNews)
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