Iglesia surrounds DOJ

De Lima: I’m just doing my job  

MANILA, Philippines - More than 1,000 members of the Iglesia ni Cristo (INC) trooped yesterday to the Department of Justice in Manila to hold what some of them called a “silent protest” against Secretary Leila de Lima after the DOJ started investigating the alleged forced detention of expelled church members.

The demonstration of INC members coincided with De Lima’s 56th birthday yesterday.

“Makiki-birthday lang po kami dito,” said two women interviewed by The STAR. They refused to give their names, saying they were only told to go to the DOJ.

De Lima had earlier said the DOJ would conduct an investigation into the alleged kidnapping of INC ministers who were expelled by the church council or Sanggunian.

The INC members assembled at the DOJ to protest the supposed unfair treatment of De Lima over the charges of harassment, illegal detention, threats and coercion filed by expelled minister Isaias Samson Jr. and his family against leaders of the church.

INC officials have questioned the “extraordinary attention” given by De Lima to the complaint of Samson, saying she has not given the same attention to the case against Moro Islamic Liberation Front rebels for the killing of 44 police Special Action Force (SAF) members in an encounter in Mamasapano, Maguindanao last January.

When asked to respond, De Lima said she was just doing her job.

Members of the INC also blocked De Lima’s vehicle from going out of the DOJ compound.

The protesters shouted “bigyan ng katarungan ang (justice for the) SAF 44” and called for respect for the separation of church and state, saying “we are one religion.”

De Lima’s vehicle moved back as INC members shouted “bias.”

Sr. Supt. Marcelino Pedroso, Public Safety Battalion chief, talked to the protesters.

Later, however, the secretary managed to get out of the DOJ building by passing through the connecting door between the DOJ and the Supreme Court, where she was escorted by members of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI).

Pedrozo estimated that between 500 to 1,000 INC members gathered outside the DOJ.

The stretch of Padre Faura street was closed to traffic due to the protest.

The INC members say they will hold a vigil for three days.

Meanwhile, a DOJ official who refused to be identified questioned why the police are allowing the INC members to block the gate of a national agency.

Pedrozo said the protesters have been issued a permit by Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada.    

Aside from the INC, the Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) also protested the failure of the DOJ to act on the killing of militants.

Bayan secretary-general Renato Reyes said they are calling the attention of De Lima to the unsolved cases of unexplained killings in the country and harassment of militants.

“We hope that Secretary De Lima prioritize these cases instead of going around and campaigning early,” he told reporters.

On Tuesday, expelled INC member Samson, the former editor of INC publication Pasugo, filed a criminal case against members of the Sanggunian before the DOJ.

INC leaders have called on church members to hold a vigil in front of the DOJ to make De Lima realize that she is messing with the wrong group when the department started a probe on the complaint of Samson.

The vigil, which started last night, will continue until Monday and culminate in a bigger assembly at the EDSA shrine in Mandaluyong unless the DOJ stops harassing the INC, according to a high ranking church official.

Sr. Insp. Robert Bunayog, commander of the Manila police Pedro Gil precinct, said the INC members arrived in batches and as of 3 p.m., some 400 participants had arrived.

The INC members occupied almost the entire portion of Padre Faura street in front of the DOJ, prompting the police to close the road.

At past 3 p.m., the participants started singing “happy birthday” each time a car exited the DOJ building, which only has one exit and entrance gate.

None of the participants, however, could explain why they assembled at the DOJ.

The STAR asked some of the participants for their reason or purpose, but received different answers, such as: “It’s upon the church.”

Others said they just want to greet De Lima on her birthday. Another said it’s just their trip, while one participant said, “Si YayaDub talaga pinuntahan namin dito (We really wanted to see YayaDub),” refering to a popular noontime reality TV character.

One female participant joked: “Kukuyugin namin si (we will attack) De Lima.”

Iglesia ni Cristo call to members

According to a source, INC leaders called for an emergency meeting last Wednesday night and directed all church members to gather at the DOJ to hold vigil. 

“Sinabihan kami nung emergency meeting na punta lang daw kami dun (we were told during the emergency meeting to just go there), bias daw kasi si De Lima,” the source said. 

INC general evangelist Bienvenido Santiago said that De Lima should focus on the case of the 44 SAF commandos with the same attention she gave to Samson’s case. 

Santiago said that Samson’s case was a pure lie and he was only trying to cause division in the religious sect.

He also questioned De Lima’s motive on the illegal detention case filed by Samson. 

Santiago learned that the case filed by Samson was done with the supervision of De Lima, and she was the one who personally processed the case.

INC members from the Caloocan-Malabon-Navotas-Valenzuela (Camanava) area are expecting the arrival of more INC members from nearby provinces to join the vigil.

“Those who served in this morning’s worship were informed of the move, so they will be the ones who will disseminate the information. De Lima had shown bias on her treatment of the cases against the church being brought to her office. Either she shuts up or braces up,” the source told The STAR.

De Lima earned the ire of the INC after she entertained the complaints of Samson and ordered the investigation on his alleged abduction and also the abduction case of other church ministers who were expelled from the church for allegedly spreading disinformation about corruption in the religious sect.

The INC is currently embroiled in a leadership crisis after the mother and siblings of INC executive minister Eduardo Manalo accused the 12-man church council of corruption involving billions of pesos in church funds.

However, the INC leadership said that De Lima’s acts are an “affront to the Church and its problems with members should be resolved within itself.”

“We are going to muster enough members to make her realize that we are a force to reckon with. If she doesn’t yield, then EDSA is the next move,” the source said.

Asked if De Lima’s plan to run for the Senate will be greatly affected by the seeming indifference of its members, the INC official said “it goes without saying.”

“We always vote as a bloc. We will not only make sure that she will not get any vote from our members, we will also campaign against her,” he said, adding they have proven in the past that they can help a candidate win.

The source said they don’t expect De Lima to crack under pressure because they know her character, “but we are going to make sure that she will hear clearly what we are going to say.”

He also slammed a female reporter from an unidentified television network for continuing to follow up the story “when everybody else has stopped covering it.”

“What does she want? It’s as if she is fanning the fire. This is an internal problem of the Church. We respect the freedom of the press, why can’t she respect the freedom of religion?” he said.

Sen. Francis Escudero called on De Lima to uphold the principle of separation of church and state in the investigation on the controversy surrounding the INC.

Escudero said any act by the DOJ might be misinterpreted as an “interference” and infringement of the right to religious freedom guaranteed under the Constitution.

“It may be prudent to first let the leadership of INC resolve what appears to be a purely internal matter,” Escudero said. – With Rey Galupo, Robertzon Ramirez, Christina Mendez