For an officer of the House of Representatives, there’s no reason members of the legislative chamber should worry about a mass action to be conducted by the Iglesia ni Cristo in support of Vice President Sara Duterte.

Several impeachment complaints against Duterte have been filed in the House and endorsed by legislators.

House Secretary General Reginald Velasco told DAILY TRIBUNE they have nothing to fear from the influential religious sect.

“Why would the House be scared? Whatever happens, we’ll face it. Why should we be afraid?” Velasco said in a phone interview.

The INC is scheduled to hold the rally next Monday, 13 January, to coincide with the resumption of the Congress session following a month-long holiday break.

The sect, numbering millions of Filipinos who vote as a bloc, said the rally would call on legislators to stop persecuting Duterte.

Some members, however, said they simply want to promote peace and end the political turmoil, not specifically to support the Vice President.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who is not an INC member, has said the impeachment proceedings would just be a “waste of time” while Congress has more important work to focus on.

Duterte resigned as secretary of education in the Marcos Cabinet in July last year. In November she threatened the President, First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos and Speaker Martin Romualdez with assassination if she were killed. She said she had contracted an assassin to carry this out.

On the INC rally, Velasco said, “We have not been informed about anything except that they’ll have this prayer rally. That’s the information we have so far. And then they’ll have medical missions, so it’s a combination, not necessarily a political rally.”

He assured the public the House members would weigh the merits of the three impeachment complaints that have so far been filed against Duterte.

The House Quad and budget committees had subjected Duterte to intense grilling during hearings on her office’s and the DepEd’s confidential funds.