Iglesia ni Cristo to hold nationwide rallies protesting impeachment raps vs. Sara Duterte
Iglesia ni Cristo (INC) is planning to hold nationwide rallies protesting the impeachment complaints filed against Vice President Sara Duterte.
The religious group made the announcement on its media outlet NET25.
"Ang mga kapatid sa Iglesia ay naghahanda na magsagawa po ng rally," Gen Subardiaga, who hosts Sa Ganang Mamamayan, told viewers in a Dec. 4 episode.
According to Subardiaga, they support President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr.'s opinion against the impeachment case. Marcos said it's "not important" and "won't make any difference to even one single Filipino life" after leaked messages showed that he asked his ally lawmakers to not pursue the case.
"Ang Iglesia ni Cristo po ay para sa kapayapaan. Ayaw po natin sa anumang uri ng kaguluhan na manggagaling sa kaninumang panig," Subardiaga continued. "Ngayon pa lamang po, mga kababayan, ay nag-oorganisa na ang mga lokal sa buong Iglesia para magkaroon ng malalaking pagtitipon."
The INC, which has millions of members across 7,000 congregations and is known for its bloc voting practice, endorsed the Marcos-Duterte tandem under the UniTeam banner in the 2022 elections.
Two impeachment cases
Two impeachment cases were filed against Duterte amid her threats against Marcos and his family, as well as her alleged misuse of government funds.
The first case, filed by civil society organizations, religious groups, and families of drug war victims on Dec. 2, accused Duterte of corruption and misconduct.
Akbayan party-list Rep. Perci Cendaña, who endorsed the complaint, said Duterte "deserves to be impeached for her abuse of power and plunder of the nation’s coffers."
“The Filipino people deserve a vice president who is ethical, accountable, and committed to public service—not one who weaponizes authority for personal gain,” Cendaña added.
The second case, filed by activists, teachers, former congressional members and others on Dec. 4, accused Duterte of betraying public trust while she was also Department of Education (DepEd) secretary.
Former lawmaker Teddy Casino, who's one of the complainants, took note of the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and DepEd's confidential funds worth P775 million. Of that amount, he pointed out the "suspicious liquidation" of P125 million "in just 11 days" at the end of 2022.
Duterte's attacks vs. Marcos
Duterte has been in hot water due to her alleged misuse of funds for her office and during her tenure as the Department of Education (DepEd) secretary.
She also made headlines after giving an expletive-laden rant against Marcos and his kin during a Zoom press conference on midnight of Nov. 23, where she accused First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos of funneling cash-filled envelopes through the DepEd. She also implied that Romualdez, during a plane ride, told her that the Marcoses were pilfering campaign funds.
What takes the cake is her unequivocal account of contracting a hitman to assassinate Marcos, his wife, and Romualdez if she were killed.
"May kinausap na ako na tao. Sinabi ko sa kanya, 'Pag pinatay ako, patayin mo si BBM, si Liza Araneta, at si Martin Romualdez. No joke. No joke,'" Duterte said in response to a commenter wishing for her safety. "Nagbilin na ako, Ma’am. 'Pag namatay ako, 'wag ka tumigil hanggang hindi mo mapapatay sila.' And then he said yes."
The following day, Malacañang said they are "acting on the Vice President’s clear and unequivocal statement that she had contracted an assassin to kill the President if an alleged plot against her succeeds."
"The Executive Secretary [Cesar Chavez] has referred this active threat to the Presidential Security Command for immediate proper action," they stated.
They stressed that "any threat to the life of the President must always be taken seriously, more so that this threat has been publicly revealed in clear and certain terms."
Duterte, however, said in a statement on Nov. 26 that the “insistence” of the current administration that Marcos' life is "under active threat" is "ominous," calling the narrative "farce" and "imagined."
"There is absolutely no flesh on the bone, and despite the absence of a reliable investigation, authorities were quick to consider this a national security concern,” she noted.
According to her, common sense “should be enough for us to understand and accept that a supposed conditional act of revenge does not constitute to an active threat.”
Later in the day, the NBI served a subpoena to Duterte, compelling her to shed light on the investigation into threats she made against the President. She, however, was a no-show at the first hearing scheduled on Nov. 29.
Duterte is also facing several complaints from the Philippine National Police (PNP), including direct assault, disobedience, and grave coercion, following a confrontation with the police.
