A Quezon City court has convicted a Kingdom of Jesus Christ (KOJC) member for violating the Public Assembly Act over a highway blockade staged during the 2024 police operations against televangelist Apollo Quiboloy.
The Metropolitan Trial Court Branch 39, Quezon City found Eduardo Corda guilty of violating Section 13(a) of Batas Pambansa Bilang 880, or the Public Assembly Act of 1985, in connection with protests conducted during the August 2024 standoff at the KOJC compound in Davao City.
In its ruling, shared by former Philippine National Police (PNP) chief and now Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) general manager Nicolas Torre III on his social media account on May 1, the court sentenced Corda to four months’ imprisonment.
Torre, in his caption, said, the decision is “not a celebration” nor “revenge,” but a reminder that “the law is the law.”
According to the decision, demonstrators occupied portions of the Philippine-Japan Friendship Highway using vehicles and other barricades, causing public obstruction during the police operations.
While the group had secured a permit for a “prayer rally and candle lighting” activity, the decision said it only covered an event strictly inside the “KOJC compound.”
“By barricading a national thoroughfare with heavy equipment, the participants exceeded the spatial authority granted. In this regard, a permit is not a license to occupy any public space at will; it is limited by the conditions and locations specified therein,” the court said.
Corda’s camp had argued during trial that he merely acted in a ministerial or peacekeeping role during the gathering and did not organize unlawful activities.
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