Controversial church leader Apollo Quiboloy on Wednesday unveiled a plot orchestrated by the United States, aided by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., to “wipe him out” amid ongoing congressional investigations into offenses associated with him and his congregation.
In a lengthy audio-video uploaded on the YouTube account of Sonshine Media Network International, or SMNI, Quiboloy said he had received information on a threat to his life.
“This is Pastor Apollo Quiboloy, the Appointed Son of God of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ, The Name Above Every Name. I should have called for a press conference right now, but because my life is in danger, you cannot see me right now but can only hear my voice,” he said.
He said he has been under surveillance by the United States’ Central Intelligence Agency and the Federal Bureau of Investigation since 2018.
“In my own country, I am hiding because they can pick me up just like that, without going through an extradition process,” he said.
Throughout the almost 40-minute audio video, Quiboloy repeatedly accused President Marcos and First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos of conniving with the United States in planning to eliminate him.
The Palace has yet to issue a statement on Quiboloy’s claims as of press time.
“We have learned at this moment from reliable sources; correct me if I am wrong, but these are reliable sources that have reached me; they (the US) allegedly no longer want the extradition treaty,” he said.
“What they plan to do, according to the CIA, the FBI, the US Embassy, and the State Department in collusion with the government of President Marcos and the First Lady, and whoever else is in the government, is rendition,” he said.
He continued: “Rendition means they can enter my compound at any time and kidnap me. It’s not only rendition but also elimination. If possible, they can assassinate me. Those are the two options
— kidnapping or assassination. It’s really killing, murder.”
Quiboloy, who served as the spiritual adviser of former president Rodrigo Duterte, has been declared one of the most wanted suspected sex traffickers by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation.
In 2021, a Federal Grand Jury in California indicted him and other KOJC officials over the sex trafficking of “pastorals” — young women within the KOJC selected to work as personal assistants to Quiboloy.
There are two separate active subpoenas against Quiboloy from the Philippine Senate and the House of Representatives.
The Senate Committee on Women, Children, Family Relations and Gender Equality, chaired by Senator Risa Hontiveros, kicked off its probe last month into the alleged crimes committed by the Kingdom of Jesus Christ under the leadership of Quiboloy, its founder.
On the other hand, the House has requested his presence at its continuing probe into alleged violations of the terms and conditions of the legislative franchise of SMNI, which he owns.
Duterte connection
Quiboloy said the “persecutions” he has been experiencing had something to do with his relationship with the Dutertes.
“Why are they so angry, and why their treatment towards me, an Appointed Son whose ministry is evangelizing the whole world with the Word of God? It’s not my fault that I am friends with politicians like President Duterte [and] Vice President Sara. We are all from Davao. We all grew up here,” he said.
“Now, I am being persecuted. I am being pressured. And I am being hurt in every way possible by false accusations, false allegations that they don’t want to take to court. They also don’t want to face — to reveal these false accusers for what they’re doing to destroy my reputation, to drag the Duterte family in the meaningless investigation they are pursuing,” he said.
$2-M bounty
Quiboloy also claimed that the FBI had placed a $2 million, or P100 million, bounty on his head.
“The CIA [is] all around us, we know that. The FBI [is] also there. This has already been discussed there in the State Department, and according to the reliable sources that reached me, I have $2 million or P100 million over my head. The money might still go up for whoever kills me first,” he said.
He added that he received information that a search warrant would be issued on his properties where authorities are set to “plant” evidence against him, such as bombs, guns, and drugs.
“We will watch out for that. I am already telling you this here live so that if ever that happens, because we don’t have those, they are the ones behind it,” he said.
Warning
Responding to Quiboloy’s audio video, Hontiveros challenged the Davao-based pastor to face the allegations against him in the Senate. She warned him that failure to do so would lead to his arrest.
“Stop playing a victim. What we are asking you to do is simply to face the allegations in the legal process, including the Senate investigation,” she said.
“Do not involve the killing in the discussion which you are used to. Our next hearing is on 5 March, and if Mr. Quiboloy does not show up, I will cite him in contempt and have him arrested,” she added.
Serious human rights abuses
For its part, the United States Embassy in the Philippines, in a separate statement, expressed confidence that Quiboloy will “face justice for his heinous crimes.”
