Two days of Iglesia ni Cristo demonstrations passed without violence, and President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said Wednesday he was grateful for it, even as intelligence had reached the government about a possible attempt to disrupt the gatherings.
“‘Yun ang concern natin. Ang pinakaimportante sa atin ay walang dapat masaktan. So let’s just keep everything stable and peaceful. And so far it has been. So I thank everybody involved for keeping it safe for everybody,” he told reporters at Villamor Air Base in Pasay before flying out for a three-day official visit to Canada.
The President used the same appearance to push back on the religious group’s central grievance. The INC has accused his administration of applying the law unevenly, and Marcos dismissed the charge outright. “Well, they have their opinion. I believe they’re wrong,” he said.
The demonstrations are tied to the looming prosecution of Senator Rodante Marcoleta, an INC member. Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla said Wednesday that his office intends to file plunder charges against the senator this week over P75 million in campaign donations he received during the 2025 senatorial race, though he did not name a specific day. Remulla, quoted by the Philippine Daily Inquirer, called the sect’s selective justice argument a flawed premise and maintained that no such practice exists at his office.
Marcoleta has said he received the money but insists it came from private friends before the official campaign period and had already been spent, denying any offense. According to Rappler, he told supporters on the second day of the rally that he was ready to be jailed if it came to that.
The protest has shifted ground. After Quezon City authorities pulled the group’s permit, citing the serious disruption the mobilization caused the public, the INC moved its action to Liwasang Bonifacio in Manila. Senator Imee Marcos and former congressman Mike Defensor appeared at the rally, joining supporters in the selective justice refrain, Rappler reported.
Malacañang has made the same argument the President did. Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said earlier that allies of the administration have themselves been detained and charged, and that the term selective justice would only apply if pressure, force, or intimidation were used to shield someone from prosecution.
