The Department of Justice declared on Tuesday that the P10 million prize for information that would lead to the capture of Kingdom of Jesus Christ head Apollo Quiboloy is legal in a Senate hearing.
Department of the Interior and Local Government Secretary Benhur Abalos Jr. revealed to the public the donation by a private citizen in early July. The development came when KOJC Executive Secretary Eleanor Cardona asked for clarification on the offer, which she referred to as “bounty”.
On the contrary, according to DOJ Undersecretary Nicholas Ty, there is a difference between “bounty” and “reward.” Furthermore, he stated that the P10M “is a reward, not a bounty”, reiterating that a bounty is for those to be arrested because they are convicted or has outstanding warrants of arrest.
For example, according to a DOJ official, there are plenty of laws that justify the legality of posting rewards for information against a person with an existing warrant of arrest. These include the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act, the Anti-Terrorism Act, the Customs Modernisation and Tariff Act, and the National Internal Revenue Code, according to Ty.
Ty said that what was important was not whether the government or private individuals would be the ones to give the reward.
