CAGAYAN DE ORO, Philippines – Senator Risa Hontiveros on Tuesday, June 11, called on the Philippine National Police (PNP) to ensure that none of its members tasked with arresting Kingdom of Jesus Christ (KOJC) leader Apollo Quiboloy were being influenced by the fugitive preacher or his allies, including former president Rodrigo Duterte.

Hontiveros made the call amid criticism of the police’s failure to catch Quiboloy and five of his associates in Davao, and for the way they carried out the operations a day earlier.

“I am again calling on the PNP leadership to ensure that none of our officers are being influenced by Quiboloy or any of his allies, particularly former president Duterte,” she said in a statement.

The senator also urged the former president not to protect his friend.

“Huwag na rin sanang pagtakpan ni Duterte si Quiboloy. Tumulong na lang siyang tumunton kung nasaan ang kaibigan niya (Duterte should stop covering up for Quiboloy. He should just help locate his friend instead),” added Hontiveros, who chairs the Senate committee on women, children, family relations and gender equality that probed the allegations against Quiboloy.

Duterte and Quiboloy have a long-standing friendship from when Duterte was Davao’s mayor. Quiboloy was Duterte’s spiritual adviser during his presidency, and recently, the former president was named as the property administrator for KOJC.

Hontiveros said there may have been a breakdown in the PNP’s intelligence gathering in Davao on Monday, noting that the police failed again to catch Quiboloy, who has long been sought by authorities.

At the same time however, she said, “I trust that more of our men and women in uniform are also doing all they can to bring Quiboloy to justice.”

The senator reiterated her call for Quiboloy to surrender.

“Cooperate with our law enforcers for once. Harapin mo na ang mga kaso at akusasyon. Wala ka nang pagtataguan (Face the charges and accusations. You have nowhere left to hide),” she said.

‘Merely for a show’

Police commandos in anti-riot gear, including members of the Special Action Force (SAF), searched the KOJC properties, including Quiboloy’s hangar, but failed to arrest the preacher or any of his five associates on Monday, June 10.

A police official in Cagayan de Oro said earlier that those who took part in the operations came from various regions and trained last week for Monday’s operations.

Quiboloy was ordered arrested by two regional courts in connection with cases of sexual abuse of a minor and child abuse filed in Davao, and human trafficking in Pasig.

His five associates – Ingrid Canada, Cresente Canada, Paulene Canada, Jackielyn Roy, and Sylvia Cemañes – posted bail in Davao in connection with the child abuse case but were also issued another arrest warrant for the trafficking case in Pasig.

None of them were located by over a hundred police officers deployed to catch them on Monday.

Dr. Manuel Jaudian, former president of the Professional Criminologists’ Association of the Philippines (PCAP), said the police commanders involved in the manhunt on Monday should be asked to explain why they launched the operations without knowing where their targets were.

“Clearly, the intelligence units did not function. Like blind boxers, they went to Quiboloy’s properties with arrest warrants. And where are the intelligence funds intended for situations like this? They are wasting time and resources,” Jaudian told Rappler.

He said the way the police carried out the operations suggested that the Davao raids were “merely for show,” and just to comply with orders from their superiors. Based on the rules, Jaudian said, law enforcers need to serve an arrest warrant within 10 days of issuance and return it to the court with a report about their compliance.

Overkill?

Duterte, meanwhile, condemned the use of what he described as “excessive and unnecessary force” within a place of worship and on the premises of a KOJC-owned school. He called the police operations an “overkill.”

“I strongly condemn the use of excessive and unnecessary force in serving the warrant of arrest for Pastor Apollo C. Quiboloy of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ by police officers who are not even from Davao City,” read part of Duterte’s statement.

Duterte criticized the administration of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. which, he alleged, failed to guarantee the preservation of constitutional rights. He said that “even the most fundamental of these rights are being trampled upon and blatantly violated.”

“Will this overkill be the trademark of this administration when dealing with individuals who are merely accused of committing a crime and have not been proven guilty beyond reasonable doubt?” added Duterte. – with reports from Ferdinandh Cabrera/Rappler.com