The demise of John Matthew Salilig raised the discussion of whether the initiation rites being performed by several fraternities in the Philippines should be stopped for good.
John Matthew lost his life after he underwent a ritual performed by Tau Gamma Phi, and instead of reporting it to the authorities, his so-called ‘brothers’ left him and buried his body in a gated residence.
The case revived the public’s calls to ban fraternities in the Philippines and also the strict implementation of 11053.
Even the old interview of the founding father of Tau Gamma Phi, Tito Venida, has been recirculated on social media because he was also against the initiation rites allegedly being done by his brothers.
In the interview that was uploaded in 2012, Venida considered the initiation rites against the law of the land and God.
“In so many years that we have been existing, I think, and I believe we’ve taken so many innocent lives. That’s what makes me really concerned about going about a fraternity preaching no h–ing policy,” he said.
“If I can stop my fraternity from taking another human life, then I have done what the LORD has commanded me, and that would be pleasing to His name.” Venida, who’s also a Christian, added.
He even admitted that his fraternity already took many lives.
However, his opinion was not being favored by other members of Tau Gamma, and some even petitioned to remove him from the list of Founding Fathers of the fraternity because of his different beliefs.