Former President Rodrigo Duterte released a statement to the public about how the Philippine National Police (PNP) personnel forced their way into the Kingdom of Jesus Christ (KOJC) compound with the hopes of catching fugitive Apollo Quiboloy.
“Our country has never been in a more tragic state as it is today. Rights have been trampled upon and our laws, derided,” Duterte wrote on his Facebook account.
In his statement, he said that the PNP’s move resulted in “a violent confrontation and the unfortunate death of one KOJC member and the requiring of immediate medical attention of many others.”
“We sympathize with the members of the KoJC for having become victims of political harassment, persecution, violence, and abuse of authority. This certainly puts a dark stain on the hands of those involved in today’s incident, led by no less than the top police official of the region,” he said.
He also urged the government to avoid being “abusive and violent in enforcing illegal orders.”
Recently, around 2,000 PNP personnel forced their way in at the KOJC compound in Davao to serve an arrest warrant on Quiboloy. After initial resistance, the police were let into the compound.
“Kinausap naman, binigyan sila ng 30 minutes para kami papasukin. Pag hindi binuksan, pupuwersahin namin kasi may natanggap kaming information na nasa loob ng compound si Quiboloy at yung mga kasamahan niya,” Police Maj. Catherine Dela Rey, spokesperson of Police Regional Office 11, spoke on Teleradyo Serbisyo.
Meanwhile, Quiboloy’s lawyer, Israelito Torreon, said that he did not know whether his client was in the compound. Torreon said that they will “continue to observe and we will continue to ensure that the rights of our clients.”
A warrant of arrest for Quiboloy was issued by the Davao City Regional Trial Court Branch 12 on April 3, followed by another warrant from the RTC in Pasig on April 11.
