Is there really a religious voting bloc in the Phl?

At the resumption of the Senate sessions last Monday, the lines were clearly drawn between those in favor of and those against the impeachment of Vice President Sara Duterte. Their sentiments could no longer hide behind the oft-repeated “no comment” as the senators did in the past. This is because they will sit as senator-judges once the impeachment trial gets underway.

Last week, Senate President Francis “Chiz” Escudero unilaterally decided to reset the presentation of the Articles of Impeachment scheduled last Monday to next week. Under fire for the latest delay, Escudero announced to his Senate colleagues he would put VP Sara’s impeachment proceedings up for debate and votes at the plenary rescheduled on June 11.

But Senate majority leader Francis “Tol” Tolentino argued the impeachment trial will be considered “functionally dismissed” if they cannot complete it before 19th Congress bows out this June 30. Tolentino, who lost his reelection bid in last month’s elections, opined the impeachment trial could not cross over to the incoming 20th Congress.

Tolentino is one of the three senatorial candidates of the Partido Federal ng Pilipinas (PFP), of which President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. (PBBM) is the nominal chieftain. Along with fellow PFP members, former Interior secretary Benhur Abalos and comebacking senator Manny Pacquiao, they all ran under the administration senatorial ticket of PBBM’s Alyansa ng Bagong Pilipinas.

On the last week of the election campaign, the Iglesia ni Cristo (INC) quietly advised its flock to vote only for senatorial candidates who support their stand against impeachment. Supposedly, the eight senatorial bets who got INC bloc votes were: re-electionist Senators Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, Christopher “Bong Go,” Pia Cayetano, Imee Marcos and Ramon “Bong” Revilla. Also Las Piñas City Rep. Camille Villar and incumbent Sagip party-list representative Rodante Marcoleta and former senator Bam Aquino.

In the just concluded midterm elections, the Jesus is Lord (JIL) Church Worldwide endorsed eight senatorial bets – all reelectionists and comebacking legislators – and seven made it to the winner’s circle. While there are many Christian churches all over the country, the JIL is perhaps one of the most actively courted Christian groups in the Philippines.

It is because the JIL actively remains as one of the biggest independent mega-churches in the Philippines. The founding father of the JIL is Bro. Eddie Villanueva, who is concurrently the CIBAC party-list representative in the 19th Congress. The CIBAC, which stands for Citizens’ Battle Against Corruption, has been registered at the Commission on Elections as a political organization since 1997.

Receiving the Christian bloc’s endorsement were re-electionist Senators Go, Dela Rosa and Cayetano; comebacking senators-elect Vicente “Tito” Sotto III, Panfilo “Ping” Lacson, Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan, Aquino and Pacquiao. A copy of the JIL memo was obtained by members of the media on May 4.

Initially, the candidates were vetted by an executive selection committee which the JIL disclosed at their annual Vision Casting exercise in January this year. Candidates went through extensive panel interviews to discuss their platforms and positions on social issues. “The executive selection committee has adopted a set of stringent criteria rooted in Christian values with a strong emphasis on candidates’ commitment to truth, justice and righteousness,” read a copy of JIL’s internal memo that listed the senatorial bets they endorsed.

After JIL’s endorsement became public, word spread fast among Christian communities such as the Philippines for Jesus Movement (PJM), which also endorsed the same senatorial candidates listed by the JIL. The PJM is the network of independent, neo-pentecostal and charismatic churches in the Philippines that Villanueva founded with fellow pastors in the 1980s.

The sitting CIBAC party-list representative is the father of Sen. Joel Villanueva, who once served as Senate majority leader during the first year and a half of the outgoing 19th Congress. The father-and-son team will continue in the coming 20th Congress.

CIBAC got more than half a million votes. Out of the 155 party-list groups that joined the May 12 national elections, CIBAC ranked 10th in the win column. Thus, CIBAC is entitled to one seat when the next Congress commences session next month. On the other hand, Sen. Joel is on his second and last term at the Upper Chamber.

Of the seven returning legislators who won, the outcome of Pangilinan’s campaign surprised many observers after voter preference surveys consistently counted him out of the winner’s circle. In a radio interview, Pangilinan, a three-term senator and former presidential food security adviser, admitted he left “everything to God” after the grueling 90-day campaign saw his rating plummet steadily since January this year. Singled-out by fake news operators and apparent troll farms, Pangilinan and his campaign team battled against the disinformation campaign against him.

But the lackluster showing in opinion polls did not deter Pangilinan. He ran on a campaign anchored on his advocacies of food security and agriculture. Pangilinan and his campaign pressed on. He quietly struggled out of the sorry defeat he suffered in the vice presidential race three years ago.

“I’ll never forget what Bro. Eddie said to me after he prayed over me. He said that he sensed a glorious outcome for me. Sabi ko sa sarili ko, teka lang. Paano magkakaroon ng glorious outcome, eh number 17 ako sa survey? Milagro nalang talaga,” Pangilinan chuckled on his encounter with the JIL founder.

“True enough, he was correct, yung kanyang prophesy. Hindi lang pumasok sa Top 12, umabot pa sa Top 5,” he continued. “I’m really grateful for the support from JIL, which came in the last week of the campaign. It came at a really critical time when our campaign was looking for one big push.”

And don’t forget, Pangilinan brought along his wife, mega-star Sharon Cuneta, who literally wooed and sang for the support of leaders of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao for the vote of our Muslim brothers.

So, is there really a religious voting bloc in the Philippines?

If the results of the just concluded midterm elections are any indication, our faith-based voters rule the polls.