MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) – Senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr confirmed that he met with Iglesia ni Cristo (INC) head Eduardo Manalo, but refused to disclose whether the bloc-voting religious sect had chosen him as their vice presidential bet.

“I went to see Ka Eduardo yesterday. We talked about very many things. But whoever Iglesia ni Cristo [is supporting], I think it is up to them to make their announcement,” the poll front runner said during a gathering with members of the media on Wednesday, April 27.

“Kung ano man ang kanilang decision ay ating ipapaubaya sa kanila,” he stressed. (We’ll leave it to them whatever their decision is.) 

Presidential candidates Manuel Roxas II, Senator Grace Poe, Vice President Jejomar Binay, and Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte earlier met with Manalo.

While the presidential candidates were the ones who requested meetings with Manalo, the case was different with Marcos. The senator’s staff said it was the INC head who invited him for a chat on Tuesday, April 26, at around 7 am.

So far, Marcos is the only vice presidential candidate to have been invited for an audience with the INC executive minister. Senator Francis Escudero had an audience with him when he joined his standard-bearer Grace Poe in seeking a meeting with Manalo.

Journalist Ellen Tordesillas wrote in a blog published early Wednesday that an INC member confirmed to her that the senator was summoned by Manalo.

Speculations 

Word has been going around online that the INC leadership is officially throwing their support for Marcos.

Since Thursday, a number of INC members posted a campaign photo of the vice presidential candidate. The posts came with the hashtag #onewithevm, which is seemingly a known tag among members of the sect.

The posts also reveal the church is supposedly endorsing Marcos’ cousin Martin Romualdez and former Metropolitan Manila Development Authority chief Francis Tolentino as their senatorial bets. 

Some news sites also reported that Marcos confirmed the church’s endorsement.

Meanwhile, ANC mentioned in their report that INC Spokesperson denied any official endorsements made saying they have yet to announce the national candidates they will support.  

But Marcos’ camp said the senator was misquoted during the news conference in Camarines Norte where he supposedly confirmed the endorsement.

He clarified his statement to be: “Magpapasalamat ako kung iyan nga ang pasya ng ating mga kapatid sa Iglesia Ni Cristo. Matagal na panahon na rin na nagkakaisa kami para sa isang buo at progresibong bansa na siya ring inihahain natin sa buong sambayanan.” 

(I will be thankful if that will be the decision of our brothers from Iglesia Ni Cristo. We have long been united for a whole and progressive country that we also propose to the whole nation.) 

Not surprising

“Ka Eduardo and I have known each other for many, many years, so we have a very easy relationship that is born out of many many years of knowing each other,” Marcos said. 

INC has been a staunch supporter of Marcos’ father and namesake, the late President Ferdinand Marcos. 

Aside from that, the INC is also known for its close ties with former president and incumbent Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada, who endorsed Marcos for the vice presidency during his proclamation rally in March.

The INC has an estimated bloc vote of at least 1 million, which may spell victory for Marcos in his tight race with Liberal Party candidate Leni Robredo.

Based on Pulse Asia’s latest survey, Marcos leads the 6-way vice presidential race with 29% of the respondents saying they would vote for him if elections were held today. Robredo is at second place with 24% voter preference.

In the Social Weather Stations survey, Robredo is tied with Marcos for the top spot. She got a 26% rating, up by 7 percentage points from the March survey. Marcos got 25%. – Rappler.com