Marcos to INC: Continue being good partner of gov’t
President Marcos on Sunday called on the Iglesia ni Cristo (INC) to continue being a good partner of government, despite the religious group’s criticism of some of the current administration’s decisions, particularly those concerning the Duterte family.
Marcos greeted the INC on its 111th founding anniversary on July 27, calling its members “model citizens and faithful servants of God through service, charity, and solidarity with others.”
“As we celebrate your 111th anniversary, may you continue to be partners of our government in building a strong and orderly society,” he said in a message in Filipino.
The President said his administration stands with the INC in its mission to help build a peaceful and prosperous nation for all Filipinos.
“Through our continued respect for and obedience to the teachings of the Lord, I believe we will overcome any challenge and achieve our dreams for our beloved country,” he said.
‘Bloc voting’ power
On Oct. 30, 2024, Marcos issued Proclamation No. 729 declaring July 27, 2025, as a special nonworking holiday in the entire country.
The proclamation aims to “give the members of Iglesia ni Cristo the full opportunity to participate in the occasion.”
Known for the “bloc voting” power of its members, INC endorsed the “UniTeam” of Marcos and Vice President Sara Duterte in the 2022 elections. The formidable tandem won by a landslide.
INC is the third-largest religious group in the country with 2.8 million members, according to the government census in 2020. Roman Catholics are the predominant group with over 85 million followed by nearly 7 million Muslims.
Bitter breakup
INC had seemed to be at odds with the Marcos administration, after the President’s allies in the House of Representatives pushed for the filing of an impeachment case against Vice President Sara Duterte.
Following Duterte’s bitter breakup with the administration, Marcos in December shunned plans to impeach Duterte, although he had warned his government was taking seriously her online remarks that she had arranged the assassination of Mr. Marcos, his wife Liza Araneta-Marcos and Speaker Martin Romualdez should an alleged plot to kill her succeed.
Despite the INC staging a “national rally for peace” on Jan. 13 opposing Duterte’s impeachment, the lower chamber submitted the articles of impeachment to the Senate on Feb. 5.
The impeachment complaint was filed by 215 members of the House, or more than one-third of its members, setting forth for the impeachment trial to be conducted by the Senate.
Du30’s arrest
INC also criticized the March 11 arrest of former President Rodrigo Duterte and his subsequent detention at The Hague over a crimes against humanity case filed against him before the International Criminal Court.
It called the move as politicking and expressed dismay that the people in charge in the current administration “didn’t listen to the call of INC.”
The religious group maintained that the former president should have been tried before a local court.
