Court of Appeals declares Temporary Protection Order for KOJC null and void

Davao City, Philippines — The Court of Appeals has declared the Temporary Protection Order (TPO) issued by Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 15 Judge March Duaves null and void.

On September 3, the CA’s 22nd Division in Cagayan de Oro nullified the TPO, which had been granted to Apollo Quiboloy’s Kingdom of Jesus Christ (KOJC).

Judge Duaves had issued the TPO on August 27, directing police and Interior Secretary Benjamin Abalos Jr. to remove all barricades and barriers blocking access to the KOJC compound and to cease any actions that could harm the KOJC’s property or its members. This order followed a petition for a writ of amparo filed by KOJC lawyer Israelito Torreon on July 1.

However, the appellate court’s five-page resolution stated that the amparo petition was closely related to cases involving Quiboloy that are already being handled by the Regional Trial Court in Quezon City.

The resolution noted that the Supreme Court had directed Davao City judges to transfer all cases involving Apollo Quiboloy to the Quezon City RTC.

The CA highlighted that Duaves should have refrained from issuing the TPO to avoid any appearance of bias or undue influence. “To allow the public respondent to continue hearing the case would certainly circumvent the mandate of the Supreme Court,” the resolution read.

In response, Torreon announced that they will file a motion for reconsideration with the Court of Appeals. “We are filing a motion for reconsideration today to emphasize that individual members of KOJC and the officers and students of Jose Maria College are not covered by the Supreme Court’s order transferring the venue of the cases against Pastor Apollo C. Quiboloy,” Torreon said.

He further argued that the writ of amparo should be filed in the court where the alleged violations occurred, asserting that since the alleged violations by the police took place in Davao City, the RTC Davao should have jurisdiction over the amparo petition.