Quiboloy’s Senate appearance secured

Religious leader Apollo Quiboloy is set to attend tomorrow's Senate hearing into his alleged crimes after Senator Risa Hontiveros secured the approval of the respective courts that hold his jurisdiction.

In a court order, acting presiding Judge Reinalda Estacio-Montesa of the Pasig City Regional Trial Court’s Branch 159 approved Hontiveros’s request for the appearance of Quiboloy and his co-accused before the Senate Committee on Women, Children, Family Relations, and Gender Equality’s hearing into his alleged crimes.

Quiboloy, Jackielyn Wong Roy, Cresente Chavez Canada, Ingrid Chavez Canada, Paulene Chavez Canada, and Sylvia Calija Cenames are all facing a qualified human trafficking charge, a nonbailable offense.

Estacio-Montesa rejected Quiboloy’s legal counsel Israelito Torreon’s opposition to his client attending the Senate probe, questioning Congress’s power to compel witnesses' attendance, especially when the individual in question is already in custody and facing charges.

“At the outset, the Court recognizes the inherent power of the legislative department to conduct inquiries in aid of legislation which is enshrined in Article VI, Section 21 of the 1987 Constitution,” the order read.

The presiding judge also cited the case of Sabio v. Gordon, where the Court stated that “even if a case is still pending final adjudication by the court, still, such circumstance would not bar the continuance of the committee investigation.”

“Wherefore, viewed from the foregoing, the letter-request to allow the appearance of the accused before the public hearing of the Senate Committee on Women, Children, Family Relations and Gender Equality on October 23, 2024 at 10:00 am is hereby granted,” the Court order said.

Quiboloy is currently detained at Camp Crame in Quezon City, following his arrest in September after months in hiding.

The Court ordered the jail warden of the Pasig City Jail, Bureau of Jail Management and Penology, and the chief of the Philippine National Police Custodial Center to escort Quiboloy to the Senate.

Likewise, Branch 106 of the Quezon City Regional Court also granted Hontiveros’ request for Quiboloy and his co-accused to attend the Senate hearing.

“On October 15, 2024, Mr. Quiboloy's counsel submitted an Opposition To The Request For The Appearance Of The Accused Before The Senate Committee. In response, this court issued an Order instructing the State Prosecutors of the Department of Justice to submit a reply within ten days of receiving the Order,” the court order said.

“However, I would like to inform you that replying to your letter has been rendered moot and academic, as the Pasig Regional Trial Court already granted your request,” it added.

Aside from a qualified human trafficking charge, Quiboloy and his co-accused are also charged with child and sexual abuse.

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.

The following year, Quiboloy was sanctioned by the United States Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, among other 40 individuals and entities, due to their supposed connection to corruption or human rights abuses across nine countries.