Apollo Quiboloy’s legal counsel, Atty. Ferdinand Topacio, former congressman Atty. Jacinto “Jing” Paras, and Atty. Manuelito Luna formally filed an ethics complaint for disorderly conduct and witness tampering before the Senate Committee on Ethics against Senator Risa Hontiveros on Thursday, August 28.
“Nandito po kami kasi ang parating ginagamit ngayon na salita ay 'accountability'. So parating sinasabi ni Senator Risa Hontiveros, ‘the Vice President should be accountable’, but dapat naman kung may offenses ka rin–allegations of offenses, you are also accountable,” said Paras, alongside the two lawyers, in an interview with the media.
“We’re filing a case for disorderly conduct of Senator Risa Hontiveros with the committee on ethics,” they said, citing the Article VI, Section 3 of the Constitution, which states that each House of Congress may determine its rules of procedure, punish its members for disorderly behavior, and—with the concurrence of two-thirds of all members—suspend or expel a member.
This complaint follows a statement from witness Michael Maurilio, also known as ‘Rene’, who claimed he was bribed with ₱1 million by Hontiveros through her staff to testify against former President Rodrigo Duterte and Pastor Apollo Quiboloy. In response, Hontiveros has already filed a cyberlibel complaint.
It may be recalled that Maurilio previously testified in a Senate hearing, alleging that he was physically harmed by Quiboloy and sexually abused by several members of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ (KOJC). He also claimed to have seen members of the Duterte family carrying firearms during their visits to Quiboloy.
The complainants clarified that while they are not making any conclusive judgment, they believe there should be a proper venue where a senator can be held accountable for their actions. They emphasized that, according to the Constitution, only the Senate has the authority to discipline its own members.
When a member of the media asked the lawyers if they believed the alleged pay-off by Hontiveros to the witness, they responded, “The issue here is not whether we believe it or not, that's why we want the Senate to investigate. The issue here is due process. The issue here is accountability.”
“Now, kung tatahimik na lang, hindi ipatawag ng Senado yung mga possible witnesses that points to her alleged offenses, walang accountability ang isang senador. Hindi lang ang Vice President, hindi lang ang President ang accountable, pati members of Congress lalo na rito sa flood control, we are also accountable,” they said, calling for transparency and equal accountability among all the positions in the government.
Meanwhile, Senator Hontiveros expressed her readiness to face the complaint, stating that she has evidence to disprove the allegations.
She strongly denied the accusations and posted several rebuttals to Maurilio’s claims on her official Facebook page.
