Quiboloy claims US, Marcos planning to eliminate him

Controversial church leader Apollo Quiboloy on Wednesday bared the alleged plot by the United States with the help of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to “eliminate” him amid the Congressional probes into crimes linked to him and his church.

In a lengthy audio video uploaded on the YouTube account of Sonshine Media Network International, Quiboloy claimed that he received information about 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.

According to him, he has been under the surveillance of the United States’ Central Intelligence Agency and the Federal Bureau of Investigation since 2018.

“In my own country, I am hiding because they can just pick me up like that, without going through an extradition process,” he stressed.

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.

“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 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 added.

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, is declared one of the most wanted suspected sex traffickers by the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation.

In 2021, a Federal Grand Jury in California indicted the religious leader and other officials of KOJC over the sex trafficking of “pastorals” — young women within the KOJC selected to work as personal assistants for Quiboloy.

There are two separate active subpoenas against Quiboloy from the 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 its founder, Quiboloy.

On the other hand, the House is also requesting his presence in its continuing probe into the alleged violations of the terms and conditions of the legislative franchise of the SMNI, which he owns.

Duterte

Quiboloy floated that the “persecutions” he has been experiencing have something to do with his relationship with the Dutertes.

“Why are they so angry, and why is 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 way by false accusations, false allegations that they don't want to take to court and 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 added.

$2-M bounty

Quiboloy also claimed that the FBI placed a $20 million, or P100 million bounty on his said.

“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 100 million pesos over my head. The money might still go up for whoever kills me first,” he said.

He also noted that he received information that a search warrant would be issued on his properties where authorities are set to “plant” pieces of 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 the audio video of Quiboloy, Hontiveros dared the Davao-based pastor to face the allegations against him in the Senate.

She, likewise, warned him that failing to do so would lead to his arrest.

“Stop playing a victim. What we are asking you to do is simply 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 March 5 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.”

“For more than a decade, Apollo Quiboloy engaged in serious human rights abuses, including a pattern of systemic and pervasive rape of girls as young as 11 years old, and he is currently on the FBI’s Most Wanted List,” said Kanishka Gangopadhay, the embassy’s spokesperson.

“We are confident that Quiboloy will face justice for his heinous crimes. Questions about legal proceedings should be directed to the US Department of Justice,” he added.