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Explained: Philippines INC rally, Sen Marcoleta's plunder case, Duterte impeachment trial
If an arrest warrant is issued, Marcoleta will join political ally, Sen Estrada, in jail and will be automatically disqualified as a senator-judge in VP Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial
- PUBLISHED: Wed 1 Jul 2026, 1:15 PM
The rally led by religious group Iglesia ni Cristo (INC) resumed for its second day on Wednesday, July 1, albeit with coordination with authorities, partially easing traffic woes around Metro Manila.
Explained as a protest against corruption under the Ferdinand Marcos Jr government, organizers however admit it is also in defense of prominent INC member and senator Rodante Marcoleta, who is facing plunder charges for admitting to have received P75 million (Dh4.53 million) from "friends" in the private sector early this year.
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INC spokesperson Edwil Zabala issued his church’s official statement a few hours after the rally started at 4am on Tuesday, saying yesterday’s announcement of plunder charges against Marcoleta is a “distortion of law.”
“The INC supports what Senator Marcoleta stands for because it is also our position. We call for transparency, accountability, justice, and peace,” Zabala said, adding: “That is why we want the authorities to hear this: Even if they imprison Senator Marcoleta, we will not stop demanding justice for our fellow Filipinos who have been robbed."
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Is Marcoleta being persecuted?
INC maintains it was in fact Marcoleta who led investigations against massive corruption involving officials of the Ferdinand Marcos Jr. government. It was Marcoleta who presented 18 whistleblowers who repeatedly said they delivered billions of pesos of kickbacks to Marcos and his cousin, former House of Representatives Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez.
“What we find puzzling is why the very person who has been pushing to expose those allegedly involved in this massive theft from the Filipino people is now the one being charged and imprisoned, instead of those he exposed,” INC’s Zabala said.
Marcoleta, in a separate statement, questioned the announced filing of charges against him while charges have yet to be filed to the likes of former speaker Romualdez. Marcoleta accuses Romualdez and Marcos as the masterminds of the massive flood control projects corruption scandal rocking the country.
Why is Marcoleta facing plunder charges?
Under Philippine laws, plunder is corruption involving at least P50 million (Dh3.1 million). Deputy Ombudsman Mico Clavano explained both public and private funds may be bases for the filing of plunder charges against sitting government officials.
Clavano clarified it was wrong for Marcoleta to accept “donations” while an incumbent government official and not reporting the funds in his statements on campaign expenditures and personal assets and net worth. As such, the funds may be considered “ill gotten,” according to Republic Act 7080, the anti-plunder law of the Philippines.
Ironically, it was Marcoleta who divulged the act in his television program aired on an INC network in November 2025. The Philippine Commission on Elections earlier dropped its motu propio (self-initiated) investigation on Marcoleta’s admission but the Office of the Ombudsman conducted its own investigation that led to the announcement of the filing of charges against the senator.
A person facing plunder charges cannot post bail to gain temporary liberty while undergoing trial. The offense carries a reclusion perpetua (life imprisonment) penalty.
What happens if Marcoleta is arrested?
If charged and issued an arrest warrant later this week, Marcoleta will join political ally Senator Jose “Jinggoy” Estrada in jail and will be automatically disqualified as a senator-judge in Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial starting Monday, July 6.
Political observers said the Office of the Ombudsman is being “weaponized” to force the Philippine Senate that would serve as the impeachment court to turn a guilty verdict against Duterte.
There are at least six other senators who are implicated in various corruption charges but several, such as Senators Francis Escudero and Joel Villanueva, have crossed over to the new Senate majority and whose charges may be delayed to ensure their participation in the impeachment trial.
The vice president herself described the evolving situation as “an increasingly oppressive political environment".
What do other political forces think?
Progressive group Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) acknowledged INC’s demand to hold all corrupt officials accountable as legitimate. The group, however, underscored INC must apply its call for accountability to its member Marcoleta.
Bayan pointed out INC must not use its rally as leverage to clear its members from accountability. “Their condemnation of selective justice smacks of hypocrisy, since their motive is merely to preempt Marcoleta’s looming arrest,” Bayan said.
As Duterte’s impeachment trial begins in a few days, Bayan urged Filipinos to be vigilant to ensure those involved in the country’s biggest corruption scandals are made accountable.