Now is the time that the groups alleging that the administration of Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. is deliberately “destroying Davao City” have all the reason to voice out their protests with the loudest decibel.
Yes, they can now “upgrade” their charges of political harassment to political persecution. What with the order of the Court of Appeals to freeze the assets of Pastor Apollo C. Quiboloy. The assets included in the order to be frozen are those in bank accounts under the Pastor’s name, real properties, motor vehicles, assets under the Quiboloy-founded Kingdom of Jesus Christ Church, his media arm Swara Sug Media Corp. that owns the franchise of the Sonshine Media Network International, and the aircraft used in the Pastor’s travels within and outside of the country..
The bank accounts and properties of a number of Quiboloy’s associates and co-accused in the human trafficking and child abuse cases are also ordered frozen by the CA. The freezing of the assets was requested by the Anti-Money Laundering Council to prevent the concealment, withdrawal, and transfer of the same while investigation and deliberation by the courts of the cases against the Pastor and his co-accused are still on-going.
The fugitive Pastor is well-known as a very close friend of former President Rodrigo Duterte and his children Vice President Sara, Congressman Polong and Davao City Mayor Baste. The former President and his children and political allies are the leading personalities in the attacks against the incumbent President.
Early on Pastor Quiboloy appointed the former President as the administrator of all his properties. But whether or not included in the assets to be under the administrative domain of FPRRD are those registered under the KOJC, it was not disclosed.
We are however, certain that Pastor Quiboloy’s advisers are among the leading legal luminaries in Davao City and in the entire country. They are not only top prosecutors and defense attorneys because of their mastery of the laws but because they are shrewd and adept at exploring ways how to have their clients dodge the laws utilizing its “weaknesses.”
We are sure that they have already long anticipated the possibility that the present dispensation of which Pastor Quiboloy is now locked in legal battles, will be tapping all means that can help the government bring him to the courts. And freezing his assets and that of his church is one of the government’s strategies.
Yet again, the religious leader’s advisers, legal or otherwise, were not born yesterday. Neither are they greenhorns in fighting legal battles. Therefore, the possibility that the move of government to freeze the Pastor’s and his church’s assets is already provided with advance counter-measures. And these measures may have included transferring the assets to other person’s name, or having one “hard-to-touch” and highly respected person in Davao City and the country as well, as his property administrator — the former President.
So, we cannot take out from our mind that the freeze order of the Court of Appeals may already be too late for the government. Therefore, the asset freezing may not anymore be effective a measure to totally “disable” the Pastor and his co-accused in the legal battle front.
However, it is our take that the Davao City-based religious taipan is now facing a much bigger legal “war” against the government with a dispersed battle fronts. He is fighting a battle in both Houses of Congress with the House of Representatives out to dismantle his broadcast franchise for alleged violations of conditions for the franchise grant. Quiboloy is also facing a still unconcluded Senate probe where he is held in contempt for his failure to appear.
On the other hand, the KOJC Pastor is now locked in battle with the government’s Executive Department. The Department of Justice (DOJ) which is spearheading the prosecution of Quiboloy in his cases both in Davao City and in Pasig is under the Executive Department of the Philippine government. It is also the same Department that can decide whether Quiboloy should be handed over to the United States where he is also facing charges if he finally surrenders or is arrested by the police.
And only the other day another battle line was drawn for the beleaguered Pastor to face – the Judiciary Department where the CA that ordered the freezing of his assets belongs.
With all these we do not know how long can the Religious leader hold on to his fugitive status and how effective can he still wage his legal battles fought in many fronts in order to win his war.
May be it is about time that he uses the “powers” granted him as the “appointed Son of God” to stave off all actions of government that he considers as “persecution” and what the anti-Marcos Jr. Davaoeno leaders as part of “political harassments” and “destruction” of the city by the present dispensation.
