Meta says Quiboloy Facebook removal due to violations on dangerous individuals policy

MANILA, Philippines – Facebook parent firm Meta on Thursday, August 31, confirmed to Rappler that the takedown of Kingdom of Jesus Christ and SMNI founder Apollo Quiboloy was due to violations of its policies on “Dangerous Organizations and Individuals.”

Meta also said KOJC had violated the same policy. Users online found the Facebook URL facebook.com/KingdomNation was inaccessible as early as Monday, August 28.

The company reviewed and determined that Quiboloy and KOJC’s accounts had violated the said policy, and as a result had both been banned from the platform. Praise, support, or representation of the group or its activities will be removed as well.

The policy on Facebook’s page states: “In an effort to prevent and disrupt real-world harm, we do not allow organizations or individuals that proclaim a violent mission or are engaged in violence to have a presence on Meta. We assess these entities based on their behavior both online and offline, most significantly, their ties to violence. Under this policy, we designate individuals, organizations, and networks of people.”

Quiboloy is currently facing US Executive Order (EO) 13818 sanctions, having been indicted for charges including sex trafficking. He is also on the US Federal Bureau of Investigation’s most wanted list.

The deletion of Quiboloy’s Facebook account was discovered on August 17, with at least one user who reported the page, receiving confirmation about the removal. Rappler would later find that Quiboloy’s Instagram account had been removed as well.

The Facebook takedown comes after the preacher’s YouTube channel was terminated earlier this June and after his TikTok account was banned in July. The two video-based platforms later confirmed that the takedowns were due to his current sanctions in the US, as well as violations of community standards. – Rappler.com