Quiboloy, co-defendants fend off sedition raps

Kingdom of Jesus Christ (KoJC) founder Apollo Quiboloy and several others filed their counter-affidavits on the sedition and inciting to sedition complaint filed against them before the Department of Justice (DoJ).

Atty. Israelito Torreon represented Quiboloy before the DoJ.

“Yes, as early as the last hearing. Now is the second hearing; I just have to be here because I’m one of the respondents. And the co-respondents likewise filed their counter-affidavits,” Torreon said following the preliminary probe on the complaint.

The Criminal Investigation and Detection Group lodged the complaint in October in relation to the serving of an arrest warrant on Quiboloy last August at the KoJC compound in Davao City.

The other respondents are Sonshine Media Network International (SMNI) broadcast personalities Lorraine Badoy and Jeffrey Celis, as well as vlogger Banat By.

Celis, in his counter-affidavit, argued that he did not incite others to sedition nor did he publish or circulate malicious claims against the government that tended to disturb the public peace.

Celis said he was only reporting the information presented to him at the time.

“It is my hope that the Honorable Office will strongly maintain that the freedom of expression is man’s birthright, constitutionally protected and guaranteed, and that it has become the singular role of the press to act as a ‘defensor fidei’ in a democratic society such as ours,” he said in his affidavit.

“Defensor fidei” is Latin for “defender of the faith.”

Meanwhile, Celis said in an interview the police’s move was a “harassment complaint.”

In August, tensions rose between policemen and KoJC members when law enforcers tried to serve the arrest warrant on Quiboloy at the religious group’s compound. The group claimed that some of their members were hurt during the service of the warrant.

Quiboloy surrendered to the authorities in September after he was given an ultimatum to turn himself in within 24 hours.