By Student Christian Movement of the Philippines national chairman Kej Andres
We slam the Senators who signed to oppose the contempt order against controversial and self-titled “appointed son of God” Pastor Apollo Quiboloy. This was based on a Senate panel’s decision to hold the pastor in contempt for not showing-up as he is under investigation for maltreatment of former workers of his religious sect. The senators include Robin Padilla, Imee Marcos, Cynthia Villar, Bong Go, and JV Ejercito, although Ejercito withdrew his signature partly because of charges by the Department of Justice of “sexual abuse and qualified trafficking”.
Tell us your political position on this matter with Quiboloy, we will tell you who your God is. Signing against the arrest of a red-tagger, abuser, and most importantly, an accomplice of the murderous and oppressive former President Rodrigo Duterte shows that their “god” is a human rights abuser as well.
It can be remembered that in February 2022, the FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation) released a wanted poster accusing him of many cases, including cash smuggling and child sex-trafficking. Moreover, he has used his platform SMNI (Sonshine Media Network International) Channels to spread disinformation, support former President Duterte’s policies, and attack progressives including youth leaders Rep. Raoul Manuel of Kabataan, Bahaghari’s Reyna Valmores, and me.
Senators blocking investigations and arrest against Quiboloy not only reflect what kind of ‘god’ they believe in, but on the politics they represent. They represent a politics systemic in the Philippines–of patronage culture, of disinformation and deception, and of preserving a politics beholden to elite interests.
In time, Quiboloy will be unmasked as a fake pastor that only upholds the social sins in the Philippines. It’s high time that the Filipino people condemn these sham preachers that do not serve the interests of the flock, but bow down to the snakes of Philippine politics.