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Beloved People of God:
Greetings in the peace of the Lord!
Today in the midst of restlessness and
confusion, we come to you as pastors, for that is our precise role.
We do not come as politicians whose vocation it is to order society
towards the common good. Our message contributes to the flourishing
of a democracy which must not be built only on political formulae.
We face today a crisis of truth and the
pervading cancer of corruption. We must seek the truth and we must
restore integrity. These are moral values needing spiritual and
moral insights.
Therefore, we address this pastoral statement to
everyone, particularly you, our beloved people and in a special way
to our political rulers and officials.
We are convinced that the search for truth in
the midst of charges and allegations must be determined and
relentless, and that the way to truth and integrity must be
untrammeled, especially at the present time when questions about the
moral ascendancy of the present government are being raised.
For this reason, we strongly:
1. Condemn the continuing culture of corruption
from the top to the bottom of our social and political ladder;
2. Urge the President and all the branches of
government to take the lead in combating corruption wherever it is
found;
3. Recommend the abolition of EO 464 so that
those who might have knowledge of any corruption in branches of
government may be free to testify before the appropriate
investigating bodies;
4. Ask the President to allow her subordinates
to reveal any corrupt acts, particularly about the ZTE-NBN deal,
without being obstructed in their testimony no matter who is
involved;
5. Appeal to our senators and the ombudsman to
use their distinct and different powers of inquiry into alleged
corruption cases not for their own interests but for the common
good;
6. Call on media to be a positive resource of
seeking the truth and combating corruption by objective reporting
without bias and partiality, selective and tendentious reporting of
facts.
For the long term we reiterate our call for
“circles of discernment” at the grassroots level, in our
parishes, Basic Ecclesial Communities, recognized lay organizations
and movements, religious institutions, schools, seminaries and
universities. It is through internal conversion into the maturity of
Christ through communal and prayerful discernment and action that
the roots of corruption are discovered and destroyed. We believe
that such communal action will perpetuate at the grassroots level
the spirit of People Power so brilliantly demonstrated to the world
at EDSA I. It is People Power with a difference. From the grassroots
will come out a culture of truth and integrity we so deeply seek and
build. We instruct our CBCP Commissions to take an active role
including networking for this purpose.
May the Lord bless us in this sacred undertaking
to build a new kind of Philippines and may our Blessed Mother be our
companion and guide in this journey to truth and integrity.
For and on behalf of the Catholic Bishops’
Conference of the Philippines:
Angel Lagdameo, D.D.
Archbishop of Jaro
President, CBCP
February 26, 2008
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