By Omar Fernando

DAVAO CITY – Netizens who read an article published by the state-run Philippine News Agency (PNA) expressed disgust with the narrations made by Brig. Gen. Nicolas Torre III, director of the Police Regional Office-Davao (PRO-11), in a press briefing on Sept. 9.

The story, headlined “PNP: Quiboloy cornered, forced to surrender,” was posted on the PNA's Facebook page the same day.

As of 11:26 p.m. on Sept. 9, the article gained 373 reactions, 92 comments, and 11 shares.

In the article, Torre claimed that members of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ (KOJC) requested him “to put off the assault in exchange for the guarantee that Quiboloy would eventually give himself up.”

“I placed 500 SAF members and 500 SWAT members simultaneously in that building. When they saw that buildup, we heard some surrender feelers at 10 a.m. We got a call from the NHQ (national headquarters) because it seems the negotiations are on a high level," Torre was quoted in the PNA article.

The PRO-11 director even claimed divine intervention in the unfolding of the events, adding that: “The Lord loves the policemen because it did not end up in a scenario that could endanger the lives of many people. This was resolved in our favor.”

The PNA article also quoted Philippine National Police Chief Gen. Rommel Francisco Marbil as supporting Torre's claims.

However, the readers debunked Torre and Marbil's claims, as shown in the comments on the Facebook post.

Almost all of the comments of netizens berated and branded him a liar.

Of the 373 reactions from netizens, 276 were expressed through laughing faces, 84 with thumbs up, nine with heart, and four with angry faces.

A netizen named Tom M Ruiz commented strikingly on the post: “Philippine News Agency ang totoo (the truth)?”

Genuine surrender, not arrest

Lawyer Israelito Torreon, legal counsel for KOJC, announced on Monday that Quiboloy surrendered to the Intelligence Service of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (ISAFP) on Sunday afternoon after several days of dialogues and negotiations facilitated by his legal team, leaders, and a mediator in the person of Davao del Norte Governor Edwin Jubahib.

Torreon regretted mentioning ISAFP but felt the public should be informed as Pastor Quiboloy trusts the AFP.

He explained that the surrender was genuine, noting, “It was really a surrender because the police didn’t actually find him. Right after there was a text message from a high-ranking police officer saying ‘gloves off’ and that anyone who obstructs them will be arrested, Pastor became very worried.”

Torreon added: He didn’t want the situation to escalate, and he wanted to check on his people and see if the situation was truly as dire as it seemed. So, he came back from the mountains, whether you believe it or not, to check on his followers.”

He said Quiboloy informed them that he had to surrender, the chaos had to end because the welfare of the KOJC members was most important to him.

“So, what General Torre said about Pastor just walking around there, that’s not true, at least not until September 7th onwards. I only found out that Pastor was back inside on September 8th, yesterday morning. That’s the truth about it.” Torreon said.

He said they met with the ISAFP officials and discussed that the arresting officer and the one handling paperwork couldn’t be from the AFP.

Col. Ruiz, he said, reached out to General Macapaz, who coordinated with higher-ups, including General Francisco.

We had to wait for the C130 plane from Manila after Col. Ruiz informed his boss, a good man, who had arrived. I know this isn't preferred to share, but it's important for the public to know,” Torreon added.

“So we went inside, and Gen. Macapaz and Col. Ruiz talked inside together with me and Pastor. Then, we left the compound and boarded the C-130 to Camp Crame. One agreement was that we didn’t want any trouble; we wanted a media blackout to put things in proper perspective. But then Gen. Macapaz requested one picture to submit to his higher-ups, and we agreed to take one picture in the plane before takeoff. General Macapaz sent it to his head; It was General Marbil, who was in the United Arab Emirates, I think,” he added.

He went on to says that while preparing for takeoff, sitting next to the Pastor, the latter expressed his distress over his members' suffering and concerns about escalating lawless violence.

Just instruments

In a post by the online news MindaVote on Monday, Jubahibnarrated how the negotiations started and succeeded with the voluntary surrender of Quiboloy and other co-accused to the officers of ISAFP.

“The day before Quiboloy decided to turn himself in on Sunday, September 8, 2024, it was agreed that the board of directors will bring Quiboloy to a place where he will be fetched by ISAFP. It was also agreed during the dialogue that other government units will only be informed that Quiboloy has surrendered when he is already secured by ISAFP,” the MindaVote article read.

Jubahib clarified that he has no personal ties to Quiboloy, but Torreon served as his legal counsel during his three-month suspension due to administrative complaints.

"It feels like we were just instruments in this situation, and we're grateful that the intense conflict in Davao City has come to an end. We know many have sacrificed for it. Our only hope is to contribute to the peace in our community," Jubahib said in Filipino.

Another KOJC counsel, lawyer Ferdinand Topacio, said his client voluntarily surrendered to the AFP, specifically to the ISAFP.

Taking credit

However, on September 8, Interior Secretary Benhur Abalosannounced on Facebook that Quiboloy had allegedly been “arrested.”

No further details regarding the supposed “surrender” or “arrest” were provided.

Topacio, in a statement, refuted the claim that his client was arrested by the PNP, criticizing

Abalos for trying to gain attention “to the highest level” and “seemingly taking credit for a non-existent arrest.”

Mindanao Times cited reports that Quiboloy and four others – Jackielyn Roy, Ingrid Canada, Cresente Canada, and Sylvia Cemañes – submitted themselves to the ISAFP at around 5:30 p.m. on Sunday.

According to the TIMES report on Sunday night, a source indicated that Quiboloy traveled from North Cotabato with an Army intelligence officer, utilizing an access road to the KOJC hangar near the old airport, where he surrendered to ISAFP chief, Maj. Gen. Edmundo Peralta.

They were reportedly flown out of Davao at 6:30 p.m. and arrived at Villamor Airbase in Pasay City by approximately 8:30 p.m. before being taken to Camp Crame in Quezon City for processing.

Meanwhile, the PNA article referred to Torre and Marbil'snarrations and did not mention ISAFP's role in Quiboloy'ssurrender.

Netizen John Angelo Peralta Alcid’s comment to a post President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. lauding the PNP and insinuating the ISAFP is lying, read, “As a grandson of (former) Senator and Defense Secretary Macario Peralta, I find it as an insult to the very institution that legitimizes his regime.”