The late former Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim once said, “The law applies to all, otherwise none at all!” In short, no one is above the law, not even the so-called “appointed son of God” here on earth.
Every so often, someone should remind Pentecostal impostor Apollo Quiboloy these words from the J.B. Phillips’ New Testament Bible on the Christian and the civil law (Romans 13:1): “Every Christian ought to obey the civil authorities, for all legitimate authority is derived from God’s authority, and the existing authority is appointed under God. To oppose authority then is to oppose God, and such opposition is bound to be punished.”
To quote another version – the New International Version (NIV) on the same Biblical passage: “Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except the ones God has chosen. Those who now rule have been chosen by God.”
So it is clear that he must submit himself to his arresting officers provided that they bring with them a warrant of arrest, which is, in essence, a lawful order. In doing so, he will be under due process and will have his day in court.
Anything other than this is unacceptable behavior both to the governing authorities, not to mention the ugly example he shows to his flock. Is this the kind of citizens he wants to harness, or are they willing agents of anarchy and civil disobedience?
For a man who claims a following of six million, it would be best for him to be a good example of Romans 13:1.
Remember, no less than the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) wants him for alleged participation in a labor trafficking scheme that brought church members to the US by fraudulently obtaining US visas, forcing members to solicit donations for a bogus charity, and donations that were actually used to finance church programs and the lavish and opulent lifestyles of their leaders.
Furthermore, church members who were successful in solicitation activities were forced into sham marriages and obtained fraudulent student visas to continue soliciting in the US for a full year.
In addition to this, female members were allegedly forced to work as personal aides, or “pastorals” for Quiboloy and that they prepared meals, cleaned his houses, gave massages, and were required to have sex with him in what pastorals would refer to as “night duties.”
The “son of God” who turned fugitive was indicted by a federal grand jury in the US District Court for the Central District of Sta. Ana, California, and for conspiracy to engage in sex trafficking by force, fraud, and coercion and sex trafficking of children, sex trafficking by force, fraud and coercion, conspiracy, and bulk cash smuggling.
A federal warrant of arrest was issued on November 10, 2021. So, for his "padrino" Rody Duterte who happens to be a lawyer, and instead of questioning the manner in which the warrant is to be issued to him, though lawfully, Duterte should instead advise Quiboloy to surrender peacefully without the usual drama they are used to and the "hakot" crowd they loosely exploit.
I predict that the next move is to raise funds for him. An “Abuloy for Quiboloy” should be in the offing.
Not bored on billboards along EDSA/who was EDSA?
Colon Street in bustling Cebu City is known as the oldest and probably shortest national road in the country. So, if DPWH or some crooked contractor would do some work on it and leave it unfinished thereafter, will the locals call the street “Semi-Colon”?
I hope not. But back here in “ghastly” Manila (thanks to Claire Danes), EDSA or Epifanio Delos Santos Avenue is home to hundreds of billboards, thanks to my good and gentleman Ilonggo friend Alvin Carranza of Digital Out-Of-Home advertising for making them bright and bubbly.
But a word of caution: looking too long on those lively and gigantic billboards constitutes a traffic violation. A glimpse or two does the trick, okay? And EDSA?
Well, Patricia Ilagan, Lolo Panyong’s granddaughter, educates us well on who EDSA was.
Born on April 7, 1871 in Malabon, and died on April 18, 1928, he was a Filipino historian and was appointed director of the Philippine National Museum and Library by Governor-General Leonard Wood in 1925.
Delos Santos was the very first Filipino member of the Spanish Royal Academy in Madrid. He studied at the Ateneo Municipal de Manila and finished his law course at the University of Santo Tomas (UST).
He was considered as one of the best Filipino writers in Spanish during his time, next only to Marcelo H. del Pilar. A nationalist and associate editor of the revolutionary paper La Independencia, writing under the pseudonym “G. Solon.” He also founded the newspaper La Libertad.
He translated Filipino literary works into Spanish Balagtas’ Florante at Laura and some of Dr. Jose Rizal’s poems as well.
Don Panyong was district attorney of San Isidro, Nueva Ecija, and later on governor of the province. A provincial fiscal of Bulacan and Bataan.
If you were to ask anyone on the street today who EDSA was, chances are you will simply get a blank stare. But for a man whose initials (with the avenue) are on the most significant and historical avenue in the Philippines encompassing the cities of Pasay, Makati, Mandaluyong, Pasig, San Juan and Quezon City, he must have been quite a giant in his days.
I just hope and pray none of our bored congressmen come up with a not-so-bright idea to rename EDSA after a lesser hero.
◆ ◆ ◆
On June 13, Thursday, 1:00-2:00 in the afternoon will be the very first airing of my program “Leslie Bocobo Live” with Katrina Ponce Enrile via government station Radyo Pilipinas 738 KHz. Joining me via Zoom will be Secretary Katrina Ponce Enrile, Administrator and CEO of the Cagayan Economic Zone Authority (CEZA).
◆ ◆ ◆
Factoid: Strongman Ferdinand Marcos’ Energy Minister Geronimo Z. Velasco’s Mercedes-Benz 450 SEL had a special plate number which read GZV 710. The GZV were obviously his initials. However, unknown to many, the 710 meant “OIL” when inverted. On the other hand, several of the late Ambassador Eduardo "Danding" Murphy Cojuangco’s cars had the numbers 610 on their plates. Reason is because Danding’s birthday is every June 10, or 610.
Comentários