Is Kapa Community Ministry Really Just a Scam?

Kapa Community Ministry is in a lot of hot water. Accused of being a ponzi scheme they have had their SEC registration revoked. In spite of that they are still operating and local politicians have refused to shut them down. Now Duterte has jumped into the fray ordering their immediate shut down. Both the PNP and SEC are preparing criminal cases. The NBI has even raided their offices despite not having a case! The raids were executed in hopes of finding evidence to build one!

What is this all about?  Let's take a brief look.

Kapa Community Ministry is the ministry of Pastor Joel Apolinario which he founded in 2016. According to the Kapa website Pastor Joel Apolinario is: 

...a Pastor, a Scientist and an Inventor for the system he is employing with where donor of any amount as member of the Kapa Commnunity Ministry International Inc. can continously recieve a love gift.

https://kapamilyonaryo.com

Here he is posing with his wife and an award for community service:

This award plays very prominently in the marketing of the ministry.

Nothing says "legit" like calling your ministry "100% Legit." The reason Kapa insists they are legit is because some are alleging that Kapa is running an investment scam where you will receive a 30% return for life.  As the bio for Pastor Joel says donors can continuously receive a love gift. Calling investors donors rather than investors is another part of their stab at legitimacy. Kapa is after all a religious organisation and not a business.

Here is how it works:

KAPA-COMMUNITY MINISTRY INTERNATIONAL INC, is a legitimate non-denominational ministry, a religious corporation organized under Philippine laws and registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission under Company Registration No. CN2017707724 represented by KAPA FOUNDER Joel A. Apolinario hereinafter referred to as the DONEE.  

The DONOR is a member of this organization that for and in consideration of the generosity which the DONOR has for the DONEE. The donated amount shall be used for the ministry to achieve its mission and vision for the propagation of religious faith, establishment of livelihood programs for the benefit of its members. The DONEE does accept this donation and does express his gratitude for the kindness and liberality of the DONOR.  

HOW TO JOIN AND BECOME A KAPA MEMBER?  

Voluntarily support the ministry by donating a certain amount of money with the minimum of five thousand pesos (5,000.00) and maximum of one million pesos (1,000,000.00) out of your willingness and generosity. 

The KAPA office will give you application forms to be filled upon membership registration in order for you to become a bona fide member of the organization. 

For those who are in abroad (ofw's) and far distant places, kindly send your donations to the trusted and honest person whom you are comfortable with as your sponsor to assist, manage and transact your money faithfully at the Kapa office. Be sure that your donation is in good hands.  

WHAT TO EXPECT AFTER MEMBERSHIP?  

Through your willingness and generosity to support the ministry, the founder itself will generously give you blessings monthly as reward in a form of LOVE GIFTS. More blessings will be given to you monthly as your love gifts based on the amount donated. The coverage of receiving this love gifts is lifetime depending upon the person's interest if he/she wants to quit for some reasons.  

The Biblical principle simply states: "The more you give, the more you receive." Luke 6:38. Thus, no wonder that when you donate (give) a certain amount wholeheartedly, you will surely receive the blessings heartily given from the founder. This is the prerogative of the founder to do so in order to answer all your needs and wants in life. Our common denominator here is only TRUST to the ministry.  

TO GOD BE THE GLORY!

https://kapamilyonaryo.com

You, the donor, give to Pastor Joel, the donee, a minimum of P5,000 every month and you will receive a reward in the form of love gifts. The amount of the gifts is all based on how much you donate. Keep in mind Pastor Joel is the donee which means the money goes to him and not to Kapa as such. The money goes to him and he does with it as he sees fit. It is also important to note that the donor will receive love gifts and not money. There is nothing said about money and that is important for legal reasons on Pastor Joel's part. Of course as we shall see the implicit understanding is that money will be received.

Here is a little more about the blessings one can expect to receive from being a Kapa member.

Basically you do get a 30% return on your money every month and you get access to their vast network. But sill they don't say outright you get money. Donors receive blessings.  Just how blessed it is to have access to Kapa's vast network? Take a look at their website and you will see Kapa owns textile manufacturing centres, mines, mango plantations, rice fields, poultry farms, fishing boats, and has a medical mission. They also have a 100% legit community service award from Gawad Pilipino which means their community service is for real. Expect it's only for members. 

Kapa has been facing an uphill battle for a while having their SEC registration revoked and even though Duterte might finally smash them members at least did their best to vote for those who support them.  Here is a sample ballot.

https://www.facebook.com/kapateamgensan/posts/2248989398697521?comment_id=2249308395332288&comment_tracking=%7B%22tn%22%3A%22R%22%7D

Do Bato, Go, and Marcos really support Kapa? Apparently. 

If Kapa is a scam then why are many people supporting it? Kapa was founded in 2016 but already boasts a large network of supporters, 10 million according to the video at this link, and is able to engage in community service on an enormous scale. How did they grow so fast? How does one obtain mines and farms in only a few years? Who the heck is Pastor Joel Apolinario and what does he teach exactly? What kind of religious organisation signs up with the SEC? I don't know because I cannot find any information about their teaching and beliefs or their history. What I want to answer is why people would support an organisation that some consider to be a scam.

The answer is the benefits. The tangible benefits of rice, fish, poultry, and whatever else is given to them no matter how small. While not a socialist state the Philippine government is tasked with many social duties. Read through the hefty and convoluted constitution for yourself to find out. Yet the government is so corrupt they don't provide anything. Social welfare agencies sometimes do not even spend their full budget which means programs do not get put into place. People go homeless and hungry. Universal healthcare is right around the corner but with PhilHealth skimming off the top who will trust them to run it? When a man like Pastor Joel comes along offering not only monetary benefits but also tangible goods why wouldn't the people trust him? He comes in the name of God. He says "To God be the glory," he gives them food and medical care, and in return they only have to give a minimum of P5,000 each month.

There are other elements too of course such as the sense of community which can be both good and toxic. The community INC offers is toxic and leads to families splitting up. I don't know that Kapa has split any families but LGU's have been hesitant to shut them down so there is the possibility of Kapa being a toxic community. Kapa seemingly wields political power by bloc voting not unlike the INC.

None of the articles I have read mention a single word about the farms, mines, clinics, and other community projects and services Kapa undertakes for its members.  The focus is solely on the 30% return. While hoping for a 30% monthly return on an investment is foolish I don't think that is the whole reason people are signing up. Without fully investigating Kapa's charitable work and community programs we will not be seeing the big picture.

Right now the government has a whole of nation approach to fighting terrorism wherein they seek to address the root causes of terrorism by providing more government support for citizens. If they wish to keep people from groups like Kapa, who are offering things the government is supposed to supply, then the government will have to step up and implement the programs it has promised and which are constitutionally mandated.