Quiboloy warrants valid unless TRO’d — PNP

The Philippine National Police will continue its search for Kingdom of Jesus Christ (KoJC) leader Apollo Quiboloy unless a court issues a temporary restraining order (TRO), PNP spokesperson Col. Jean Fajardo said Monday.

“Unless the courts issue a restraining order, it means we can implement the warrants of arrest because these have lifetime effectivity. Until these are served or quashed, we can implement these any time of the day,” Fajardo stressed.

On 5 July, officials of the KoJC filed a petition for a writ of amparo and habeas data before the Davao City Regional Trial Court against Interior and Local Government Secretary Benjamin Abalos Jr. and PNP officials following the simultaneous raids on five KoJC properties in the search for Quiboloy on 10 June.

Fajardo said that KoJC members can file cases.

“That is their right to go to the proper venue and, in fact, they even filed a case against the chief PNP and other senior officers before the Ombudsman. The PNP will answer this, and we will let the court decide who is in the right in implementing the warrant of arrest,” she said.

The writ of habeas data is a constitutional right that provides citizens the right to access personal information collected by the government or a private entity and to challenge or correct the data.

PNP Chief General Rommel Francisco Marbil had previously said that Quiboloy’s “blatant disregard” of the country’s judicial process and the rule of law is posing a “high threat” and a “formidable challenge” to the authorities who are looking for him.

Marbil earlier said that KoJC members were armed with guns and bladed weapons and had engaged in violent confrontations with the police during the simultaneous raids.

He ordered the PNP Internal Affairs Service to conduct an impartial investigation to determine if any operational lapses or “excessive force” were committed during the police operation.