Friday, March 07, 2008 Forget accused is priest: Tomas to prosecutors
EVEN if he is pleased with how the Archdiocese of Cebu is handling the case against one of its priests, Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña called on the city fiscals to forget that the accused is a man of the cloth.
Even if the vocation to the priesthood is one of the most respected in the country, fiscals and prosecutors should not neglect their obligations to society, he said.
He was referring to Fr. Benedicto Ejares, who was earlier accused of lascivious acts while hearing the confessions of high school students in 2006.
Twenty of the students complained that Ejares touched them inappropriately while they were attending a Life in the Spirit Seminar organized by Catholic charismatic group Oasis of Love at their school last Nov. 14, 2006.
NBI
They said Ejares stroked their arms and their backs, and toyed with the straps of their bras while hearing their confessions.
The National Bureau of Investigation filed complaints against Ejares after talking to the students.
The Office of the Cebu City Prosecutor, after reversing its position in a resolution it issued last October, recently resolved to file a criminal case against Ejares.
Cebu Archbishop Ricardo Cardinal Vidal earlier announced that the Archdiocese of Cebu will respect and allow the courts to decide on the case.
For his part, Osmeña encouraged fiscals to do their job and to “look at the individual (the accused) if what he did was right or wrong.”
Reluctance
He said there is a natural reluctance to prosecute a priest because he enjoys high stature in society.
“We also have to recognize that there is a natural intimidation on the part of the prosecutor to be running after a priest,” he said.
In a news conference yesterday, he reminded the fiscals of their obligation to protect the children and “make it clear to all those involved in (sexual harassment cases) that they are not untouchables.”
“If there is evidence and a warrant of arrest, we will have to do our jobs and go after suspects even if they are members of Alpha Kappa Rho, Tau Gamma Tau, Bando Osmeña-Pundok Kauswagan, or the Catholic Church,” he said. (NRC)
