Wednesday, October 15, 2008 Bishops divided over Arroyo impeach rap
THE Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) admitted Tuesday that getting a common stand on the new impeachment complaint against President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo among the bishops would be impossible.
CBCP spokesman Monsignor Pedro Quitorio said that unlike the Reproductive Health (RH) bill, which is viewed as a "moral issue" among the clergies, the impeachment case is considered a "political" issue.
"We have a unified stand on the RH bill because this is a moral issue. But in a political case like impeachment, we have different positions," he said.
According to Quitorio, the bishops' role in the impeachment case would only be limited to providing guidance.
Caloocan Bishop Deogracias Iñiguez, public affairs officer of the CBCP, supports the impeachment charge against Arroyo saying all government officials including the President should be held accountable for their mismanagement of the country's affairs.
Iñiguez also agreed with Quitorio's statement that each bishop is independent from one another, but he is hoping that his colleagues would follow the light of justice.
"I hope the bishops will really be examining their own perceptions of what is happening to our country," he said.
Multi-sectoral groups filed last Monday before the House of Representatives an impeachment complaint against Arroyo on grounds of betrayal of public trust, culpable violation of the Constitution, bribery and graft and corruption, and other high crimes.
Asked if they will also approach the lawmakers to support the impeachment, Iñiguez said the bishops can only provide moral support to the people and that the real action must come from the members of the House of Representatives.
"The bishops will be encouraging these people to be truthful and to really be concerned for the common good," he stressed.
Under the Constitution, signatures of at least one-third of the 240 congressmen are needed before the complaint can be forwarded to the Senate, which is the impeachment court, for a trial.
CBCP president and Jaro Archbishop Angel Lagdameo, for his part, called on the public to be vigilant on the processing of the complaint.
"I urge the people to keep an eye on the progress of the fourth impeachment complaint against President Arroyo," he said. (MSN/Sunnex)
