PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. defended on Tuesday, August 27, 2024, the ongoing police operation that aims to arrest Kingdom of Jesus Christ (KOJC) fugitive leader Pastor Apollo Quiboloy.
In an interview with reporters, Marcos maintained that he sees no human rights violation in relation to the operation, which was launched by the Davao regional police office led by Brigadier General Nicolas Torre III in the KOJC compound in Barangay Buhanginan on Saturday, August 24.
He also denied accusations that there was “overkill” on the deployment of police to carry out the operation.
“Considering this is a 30-hectare compound, kailangan mo talaga ng maraming tao. Hindi mo pwedeng gawin ito na isang dosena lang. Hindi na bale ‘yung mga lumalaban o mga nagreresist, nanghaharang, hindi na bale mga yun, para nalang doon sa pag inspection ng 30 hectares kailangan mo na kaagad ng maraming tao,” he said.
(Considering this is a 30-hectare compound, you really need a lot of people. You can't make it just a dozen. It doesn't matter those who fight or those who resist or block, they don't matter anymore, just for the inspection of 30 hectares, you need a lot of people right away.)
“I think what they are talking about is political na yan, hindi na totoo yan. You go to human rights advocate, there is nothing that we did. Lahat ng pumasok na pulis hindi armado, walang baril, kahit isa. Hindi kami gumamit ng tear gas, so anong human rights violation? Marami lang (ang pulis). Kung kakaunti yon, mas marami pang nasaktan, na supporter ng KOJC at na pulis,” he added.
(I think what they are talking about is political, that is no longer true. You go to human rights advocate, there is nothing that we did. All the police who entered were unarmed, without guns, not even one. We didn't use tear gas, so what human rights violation? There are only many (the police). If that was few, many more were hurt, KOJC supporters and police.)
Marcos said that while he understands the anger and disappointment of the KOJC members, the police were just doing their job in enforcing the arrest warrant against Quiboloy.
“Hindi ko nga maintindihan bakit dinadamay ni Quiboloy ang mga tauhan niya, kasi sinasabak niya mga tauhan niya, wala naman kasalanan mga yan (I don't understand why Quiboloy is dragging his men and letting them fight, they’re not the ones guilty). They just believe. They are looking for an answer, a value system and they think they have found it with Quiboloy,” he said.
“But they did not sign up to be in the frontline of this kind of thing, that is happening now that they will protect him from arrest even when he has cases filed not only here in the Philippines but also in the United States,” the President added.
Earlier, former President Rodrigo Duterte, who was appointed by Quiboloy as the administrator of KOJC properties, slammed the government over the ongoing police operations, saying that the country “has never been in a more tragic state.”
He tagged the incident as “political harassment, persecution, violence and abuse of authority.”
Quiboloy has a standing arrest warrant over human trafficking and child and sexual abuse.
He is also facing 43 cases in the US, which include sex trafficking by force including of children, money laundering and fraud and coercion, among others. (TPM/SunStar Philippines)