MANILA, Philippines — Detained pastor Apollo Quiboloy will run as an independent senatorial candidate in the May 2025 mid-term elections after revoking his “acceptance” of the Workers and Peasants Party (WPP)’s nomination.
“Given the ongoing party dispute, I am revoking my acceptance as a nominee of WPP,” Quiboloy said in his letter to Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairman George Garcia.
Quiboloy is capable of mounting a national campaign without a political party backing him, according to his legal counsel Mark Tolentino.
The Comelec listed Quiboloy among 66 legitimate senatorial candidates even after the WPP disowned his party membership.
At a forum yesterday, Garcia said the poll body allowed Quiboloy to participate in the 2025 elections since there is no final ruling on the criminal cases against him.
Quiboloy is facing charges of child and sexual abuse and qualified human trafficking.
Tolentino is reportedly the president of the WPP. He said the party will support Quiboloy’s candidacy.
The WPP issued a Certificate of Nomination and Acceptance to Quiboloy on Oct. 7 when he decided to run for senator, Tolentino recalled.
“We are the authorized signatory, but someone caused trouble and introduced themselves as the WPP. It turns out, it’s another party, the Workers Party Philippines,” he said.
Labor leader and senatorial aspirant Sonny Matula earlier filed a petition to declare Quiboloy a nuisance candidate.
Tolentino requested the Comelec to cancel the candidacies of Matula and nine others, claiming they are running “under the Workers Party Philippines,” which he said is unaffiliated with the Workers and Peasants Party.
Quiboloy opted to revoke the nomination since he did not want to get involved in the intra-party dispute, Tolentino said.
Meanwhile, Garcia said the intra-party dispute will be resolved later by the Comelec, but it would not affect Quiboloy’s candidacy.
“If somebody will file a petition against a candidate, that would be a different matter altogether,” he said.
The Comelec has not received any petition questioning Quiboloy’s qualification, he noted. — Emmanuel Tupas