Senator Risa Hontiveros on Thursday said the leader of the alleged cult group Socorro Bayanihan Services Inc. (SBSI) in Surigao Del Norte has been invited to a Senate probe into the reported sexual abuses, forced marriages, and other violence against minor children.
Interviewed during DZRH's Damdaming Bayan, she said they invited Jey Rence Quilario, or alias Senior Aguila to the Senate probe slated next Thursday, September 28.
Eight children who successfully escaped the cult were also invited to join the hearing, she added.
But Hontiveros said that two out of the eight children were taken by their parents after they filed a habeas corpus.
"'Yung anim na malaya pa at nasa mabuting pag-aalaga ng Municipal Welfare and Development Office, tatlo sa kanila ay nakaka-testigo sa aking privilege speech sa pamamagitan ng video. Sila ay aming iimbitahan," Hontiveros said.&nbsp;
According to the Senator, the children lamented that they have no future in Mt. Kapihan, the mountain where the Socorro Bayanihan Services Inc. members are located.
"[S]ila ay pinagbabawal mag-aral tapos kinukulong sa mga kwarto, pinipilit makipagtalik kay Senior Aguila mismo at sa ibang mga nasa hustong gulang. Itong mga bata ay menor de edad. Ang iba sa kanila ay pilit na ipinipakasal doon sa mga nasa hustong gulang," she said.&nbsp;
"Ang dami-daming mga batas para sa bata ang nilalabag sa kanilang sitwasyon," Hontiveros added.
The Senator said thousands of children and parents were made to believe that Sitio Kapihan was the true heaven and that Quilario was the Senior Santo Ni&ntilde;o.
"Ang hindi raw sumunod sa kanya, masusunog sa impyerno kaya higit 3,000 ang umakyat at higit 1,000 ay mga bata," she added.
The Senator said the minor children are in need of help.
"Pinakamahalaga ang mailigtas natin ang mga batang ito...&nbsp;Napabayaan ang kinabukasan na isa sa pinakamahalagang edkuasyon. Hindi pa kuntento sa pagkakait ng karapatan ay pagkakataon, inaabuso pa," Hontiveros emphasized.
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Socorro cult leader invited to Senate hearing on Sept. 28 - Hontiveros