Iglesia ni Cristo (INC) members have rejected allegations circulating on social media that protesters were paid P3,000 each to join the group’s three-day anti-corruption rally at the Quirino Grandstand in Manila.
The denials were released through a video posted by “INC News and Updates,” the religious organization’s official broadcast media page. The clip featured several protesters—whose names were withheld—speaking directly on camera to refute the claims.
“Walang pong bayad sa amin dito,” one attendee said in a GMA News Online report, stressing that they joined the event voluntarily. Another member pushed back harder against the rumor, saying, “Ang dami pong kapatid na Iglesia Ni Cristo na nandito po ngayon. Tapos, P3,000 per head? Nagpapatawa po kayo. Sabi nga ng ibang kapatid dito, baka kami po ang magbigay sa inyo ng P3,000.”
The allegations surfaced online just as the INC kicked off its three-day mass action from November 16 to 18, aimed at demanding accountability over controversial flood control projects linked to government agencies.
The Manila Police District (MPD) reported that the crowd swelled to 650,000 by 6 p.m. on the first day of the rally. Authorities from the Department of the Interior and Local Government and the Philippine National Police described the opening day as “generally peaceful.”
By Monday morning, around 110,000 participants had camped overnight to continue the second day of demonstrations, MPD spokesperson Police Major Philipp Ines said.
