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Pro-PNoy or pro-Corona? Iglesia ni Cristo rally seen as show of force
February 27, 2012 6:57pm
The giant Iglesia ni Cristo (INC) gathering in the Luneta in Manila Tuesday is touted as a "Bible Exposition," but observers also see it as a demonstration of their numbers and potential political clout.
A few hundred INC members were notably present in support of Chief Justice Renato Corona at a Supreme Court rally about three weeks ago. Corona's chief defense counsel, former Justice Serafin Cuevas, is a prominent member of the religious group.
The INC offiicially denies any political purpose in the gathering, which will mirror similar Iglesia events on the same day in 18 other places around the country.
“This religious activity is one of the means by which the Church propagates the teachings of God in the Bible that members of the Iglesia Ni Cristo believe to be essential for man’s salvation,” says Bienvenido Santiago, INC spokesperson.
However, political analyst Ramon Casiple sees it as a "show of force" by the INC's relatively new leader, Eduardo Manalo, who assumed the mantle when his father Eraño Manalo died in 2009.
The INC boasts of a voting-age membership of two million, although pollsters estimate it at between one and 1.5 million. In close elections, analysts say, they can spell the difference between win and loss, and famously produced a command vote in favor of the victorious candidate Noynoy Aquino in 2010. Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Ramon Paje was a surprise Aquino appointee, after the INC endorsed him for the position.
While some members may have been at the Corona rally, Casiple doesn't believe the influential group is about to abandon Aquino.
"It is disastrous, I think, na humiwalay or maging antagonistic sa any incumbent president. They have always worked with the incumbent president. This President is very popular, and they cannot afford to antagonize him," says Casiple, who is head of the Institute for Political and Electoral Reform in Quezon City.
Malacañang for its part has professed to be unworried. "For us, it's entirely a religious celebration and, from what we undestand, it's normal for them (to have such gathering in preparation) for their upcoming anniversary," says Palaces deputy spokesperson Abigail Valte.
Hundreds of thousands of INC members from over 4,000 INC congregations are expected to converge at the Quirino Grandstand in Rizal Park, or Luneta, on Tuesday.
The INC is considered the largest Christian organization that originated in the Philippines.
Aside from the Luneta, INC members are also expected to gather in the following venues around the Philippines:
Isabela Sports Complex, Isabela
Jose V. Yap Sports and Recreational Complex, San Jose, Tarlac
Gloria Town Plaza, Oriental Mindoro
Pili Freedom Sports Complex, Pili, Camarines Sur
La Union National High School Sports Complex, San Fernando City, La Union
Paglaum Sports Complex, Bacolod City
Cebu City Fuente Osmeña
Tacloban City Convention Center
Pagadian City Gym, Zamboanga del Sur
Limketkai Center, Cagayan de Oro City
Davao Agro-Football Stadium, Davao City
Gen. Santos City Gym
La Paz Plaza, Iloilo
Butuan City Sports Complex
Odiongan Sports Complex, Odiongan, Romblon
Puerto Princesa Coliseum, Palawan
Coron Gym, Palawan
Sta. Cruz Plaza, Sta. Cruz, Marinduque
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