Bong Revilla gets Iglesia Ni Cristo’s vote

Senator Ramon ‘Bong’ Revilla Jr. — File photo from Senate Public Relations and Information Bureau

MANILA , Philippines — Reelectionist Sen. Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. has received the official backing of religious group Iglesia Ni Cristo (INC).

This was confirmed by Revilla himself in a statement issued on Thursday, exactly four days before the midterm elections slated on May 12.

“Thank you to Eduardo Manalo and the entire INC for your continued trust in me, in relation to your decision to once again support me to continue my desire to serve the people,” Revilla said in Filipino.

READ: INC endorsements: Do they matter?

“I will not waste your support and trust,” he added.

A source told INQUIRER.net that the INC already has a list of senatorial candidates they are bound to support, but it has yet to be released to the public.

Founded in 1914 by Felix Manalo, INC is a religious movement whose members are believed to obey long-held bloc voting practices inside their church and vote for candidates endorsed by their leaders.

With millions of members nationwide, endorsement from the INC has always been believed to be influential, especially for candidates running for top government positions./das