Police try to pacify angry Iglesia ni Cristo protesters near the DOJ compound. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO/RAFFY LERMA
As the Iglesia Ni Cristo (INC) protest in front of the Department of Justice (DOJ) continues to swell, the Manila Police requested more personnel to be deployed to maintain peace and order in the rally area.
“We will add sufficient number of personnel and we expect that 100 policemen will be deployed,” Superintendent Marissa Bruno, Manila Police District spokesperson, said in an interview over Radyo Inquirer 990 AM on Friday.
As of latest, there are 3,000 INC members massed up from outside the DOJ compound on Padre Faura street up to Taft Avenue in Ermita.
Asked how long they expect the protest to last, Bruno said, “There’s no definite time but we respect their right to express their opinions but at the same time, we also have to ensure the safety of the general public.”
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Superintendent Albert Barot, Ermite Police Station commander and head of the area security in the protest, said they will be requesting 50 contingents from the MPD’s public safety battalion.
“Our deployment at present is about over 60 but we will be needing another 50 personnel,” Barot said.
Since Thursday afternoon, thousands of disgruntled INC members have been assembling outside the DOJ office to oppose Justice Secretary Leila de Lima’s alleged interference in the internal affairs of the influential religious sect. They are also calling for the separation of church and state.
The INC accused De Lima of coddling their expelled members, who were put under the government’s Witness Protection Program. De Lima personally gave assistance to INC members Joy Yuson, former coordinator of the TV arm of INC, Lito de Luna Fruto, Roel Rosal and Anthony Menorca and his family.
Another suspended INC member Isaias Samson Jr., the former editor-in-chief of Pasugo, also filed a complaint before the DOJ against eight members of the Sanggunian, the highest administrative council of INC, for serious illegal detention.
“Wala pong paglisan sapagka’t tuluy-tuloy po ang paglalaban ng aming pananampalataya dito (No one will leave because the fight in the name of our faith continues),” one of the protesters told Radyo Inquirer 990 AM. Julliane Love de Jesus, With a report from Ruel Perez, Radyo Inquirer 990 AM/IDL