Controversial Philippine televangelist wanted by US for sex trafficking to run for senate
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“Appointed Son of God” Apollo Quiboloy is accused of trafficking and raping minors.
PHOTO: AFP
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MANILA – A detained Philippine pastor who is also wanted in the US for sex trafficking children registered on Oct 8 to run in next year’s senate elections.
Apollo Quiboloy, an ally of former president Rodrigo Duterte, is a self-proclaimed “Appointed Son of God” whose sect claims millions of followers.
The 74-year-old was arrested in September
“He wants to be a part of the solution to the problems of our country. He is running because of God and our beloved Philippines,” lawyer Mark Christopher Tolentino said.
Quiboloy pledges to promote laws that are “God-centred, Philippine-centred and Filipino-centred”, Mr Tolentino told journalists after submitting the candidacy papers to election officials.
Lawyer Mark Christopher Tolentino files the candidacy paperwork for preacher Apollo Quiboloy, who is running for senator.
PHOTO: AFP
The circumstances are not without precedent.
In May 2022, Mr Jose Estrada won a senate seat while on trial for corruption. He took up the post and was acquitted in January.
Another was rights campaigner Ms Leila de Lima, who spent the majority of her six-year senate term in prison after being detained in 2017 on drugs charges. She was cleared in 2024.
Candidates are only disqualified from standing in senate elections if they have exhausted all appeals after being convicted of offences involving “moral turpitude”, according to the election code, which does not list specific crimes.
Sex trafficking and money laundering
Quiboloy was charged by the US in 2021
He is also sought by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) for cash smuggling and a scheme that brought church members to the US through fraudulently obtained visas.
They were then forced to solicit donations for a bogus charity, raising funds that were instead used to finance church operations and the lavish lifestyles of its leaders, according to the FBI.
Twelve of the 24 senate seats are up for grabs in the 2025 mid-term polls, along with more than 18,000 congressional and local government executive posts. AFP
