A former Presidential Adviser and Consultant under the Ramos and Duterte administrations is now questioning the government’s harassment of the religious leader of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ, Pastor Apollo C. Quiboloy.
He claims that Risa Hontiveros and the mainstream media are wrong for immediately accusing the good Pastor without a court proving his guilt.
“That’s why all of this thing is a sham. That is what the Senate is doing, Hontiveros?” Jose Alejandrino Former Assistant Adviser, FVR Former Consultant, FPRRD said.
These were the words of Jose Alejandrino, Presidential Assistant to former President Fidel V. Ramos and consultant to former President Rodrigo Duterte, in an exclusive interview with SMNI News.
The former government official’s statement is related to the allegations and fabricated accusations against the religious leader of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ, Pastor Apollo C. Quiboloy.
Recently, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) announced a ten million peso reward for anyone who could provide information on Pastor Apollo’s whereabouts.
Alejandrino questioned as to why the government is acting this way without a court proving the good pastor’s guilt.
“There is a case. I don’t know the details of the case, alright? But you know there is a presumption of innocence as far as I can see it until Quiboloy is found guilty by a court, and that is beyond reasonable doubt,” Alejandrino added.
‘’Until Pastor Quiboloy is found guilty by a court beyond reasonable doubt, he is still presumed innocent,’’ he said.
Alejandrino emphasized that the Senate’s actions are wrong—demanding hearings and immediate persecution of those involved without proof of guilt, asserting that the Senate is not a court.
“You cannot do what they’re doing in the Senate committee of Hontiveros—go and do a witch hunt and conduct a trial in which you have no jurisdiction. The jurisdiction of trying a person belongs to the court, and a Senate committee is not a court. What they’re doing is wrong,” he added.
Regarding the witnesses, Alejandrino stated that if there are real victims, they should present themselves properly and not wear masks. Therefore, everything Hontiveros did in the Senate lacks due process.
“And besides, there is another aspect of due process. Quiboloy, who has been accused by these certain women, has the right to face his accuser because these women turned up there at the hearing wearing masks. You can’t even know who they are; they could be anybody. How do you know the real victims? You cannot, and you’re going to take the word of it? They are there wearing masks. The whole thing is a lack of due process,” according to Alejandrino.
He claims that the current administration’s moves targeting the KOJC, SMNI, especially Pastor Apollo, has one reason—and that is, to prevent former President Rodrigo Duterte from exposing the corruption and flaws of the Marcos administration.
“If there are some people there who are real victims, they should go to court, and there is a procedure. Now why are they doing it the other way? By using the Senate platform to conduct a trial by publicity of Quiboloy? There is only one answer: because they want SMNI shut down because they don’t want SMNI as a platform for Digong to use. It’s as simple as that. That is the real intent,” he added.
He likened what the Marcos administration is doing to Pastor Apollo to their treatment of former Bureau of Corrections Director General Gerald Bantag, who was publicly shamed in a committee hearing without adequate evidence and is now labeled a fugitive without substantial proof. He likened this to Neo-Nazi tactics.
“Just like Bantag, they carried out a trial by publicity against Bantag. And where is Bantag now? Why is he not—why is there no trial? Because they do not have enough evidence to convict him. If they had enough evidence, then Bantag should be in jail by now. But Bantag is not in jail. Why? There’s no trial. Why? Because their trial by publicity was afar. The same thing they’re applying to Pastor Quiboloy. These are Neo-Nazi tactics,” Alejandrino said.
Alejandrino also questioned why the mainstream media supports Hontiveros’ allegations against the good pastor when he has not been proven guilty.
“And as I said, until Quiboloy is found guilty beyond reasonable doubt by a court, he is presumed innocent. So what is the press doing who are covering the Hontiveros hearing? It is wrong because you are assuming that he is already guilty,” he said.
He pointed out that everything the administration is doing is against the constitution and they are doing it, even if it is wrong, to silence government critics.
“So what is this government doing? They are violating all the provisions of the constitution. So you know, when you look at everything of what is happening, what they’re doing is wrong,” according to Alejandrino.
“Yes, by closing SMNI, they are depriving government critics the right to dissent, to express their opinion. In other words, all the hullabaloo about Quiboloy is to pressure Quiboloy not to give Digong a platform to criticize them. This is how I see it,” he added.
