For many people, the truth is hard to accept, even painful. It can challenge even the minds and hearts of good, ordinary people. There are those living in a dark world where the “truth” is a fantasy they create to satisfy their desire for power over others and for pleasure and riches for themselves.
The revelation of the truth is the one thing such people detest. It refutes false narratives and reveals dirty acts that harm innocent people. Wrongdoers do all they can to prevent the truth from being published, even to the point of killing the journalists revealing it.
But for hundreds of Filipino journalists dedicated to and standing for truth and human dignity, revealing the truth is worth dying for. The truth shall set us free from ignorance and corruption. The highest number of journalists killed in a single event was recorded in November 2009, when a powerful political clan in Maguindanao had more than 30 of them massacred. Since then, an average of five journalists have been killed in the Philippines every year.
Revealing the truth is the most effective way to challenge powerful dynasties that trample on the poor and vulnerable. The power of the truth is seen when people accept and act on it, are determined to change society for the better and hope that justice can be done. That is what finally happened when Apollo Quiboloy was arrested.
Media reports — despite the threats and the cover-up over many years, as well as protection extended by powerful politicians, including former president Rodrigo Duterte — have finally revealed the crimes Quiboloy allegedly committed. He may claim to be a Christian pastor, but he was really a master of manipulation said to have exploited and sexually abused children.
During Quiboloy’s arrest at his Kingdom of Jesus Christ (KOJC) compound near Davao City’s airport, reporters were surrounded by his followers who were harassing and threatening them. KOJC members threw water bottles at the journalists’ vehicles. One photojournalist, Toto Lozano, was surrounded by a furious crowd as Quiboloy’s followers gathered by the hundreds to prevent their leader from being arrested. But other journalists rushed to rescue Lozano.
The most heinous crimes charged against Quiboloy and some of his helpers involved systematic child sexual abuse. He allegedly had a team of enslaved children, as young as 12, called “pastorals,” who were coerced into having sex with him.
In 2021, a United States federal grand jury released a 70-page document that indicted Quiboloy and a number of his followers not only for child sexual abuse but also for human trafficking, money laundering and fraud. He has thousands of followers in several countries who were allegedly persuaded or coerced into raising money by begging or selling goods for him. Overseas Filipino workers were tricked into believing in this “Appointed Son of God,” as he was called, and in his “kingdom.” It made him super rich; he had private helicopters and a private jet.
What should shock all of us is the way religious beliefs have been manipulated and twisted into a money-making scheme for a person’s self-enrichment. Quiboloy’s use of Jesus’ sacred name for his allegedly corrupt organization could be considered blasphemous since it offered a cover for the alleged criminal activities committed in his name.
We also must reflect on the level of the real education of many Filipinos who are so easily persuaded by social media and certain personalities to believe and follow anything without critical thinking or reflection. The system of teaching reading and the competence of teachers is being challenged because of the low literacy rate of Filipino students. A 2022 World Bank report said about 90 percent of Filipino children aged 10 had difficulty reading or understanding simple texts. Approximately 40 percent of students cannot read at a basic level.
Portia Padilla, a faculty member of the University of the Philippines College of Education, recently said that some of our teachers did not possess the basic competencies to teach reading.
“As far as education and reading are concerned, we cannot give what we do not have,” she said.
This low level of education and comprehension makes a large section of society unable to think, understand and decide for themselves. This creates a desire to belong and be accepted by others in a movement, cult or political party that provides a quick and easy answer, however false, in a popular way. Many just accept it, unable to understand for themselves and vote without being aware of its real purpose, which could be criminal in nature or damaging to them and society.
The ascent of the Dutertes, aided by Quiboloy and his quasi-religious-political ideology, gave rise to the extreme violence of the former president’s war on illegal drugs. Behind all of this is the moral decay in our nation. Truth, honesty, respect for human rights and dignity, and child protection have declined, and concern for Filipinos’ plight has diminished. Political dynasties always vie for power; it is not really the free choice of the majority that results in the election of government officials, including the president, but the power of money and patronage, like what Quiboloy offered, determines who rules the nation.
In a recent article, Bishop Antonio Abion of the Philippine Independent Church, now living in exile abroad due to his outspokenness for human rights, said: “It is time for the church to stand on the side of justice to challenge the dynasties and corrupt systems that protect the powerful at the expense of the vulnerable, and to lead their flocks in demanding the transformation of a society that has lost its moral bearings.”
Finding moral values, respect for children’s rights, and a commitment to truth and justice are what we must strive to bring about.
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This column was first published in The Sunday Times (www.manilatimes.net) on September 15, 2024. Print, digital, and online republication of this column without the written consent of the author and of The Manila Times is strictly forbidden.
