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Tuesday, June 10, 2003
It’s Vatican that probes Bacani case: bishops
MANILA -- The Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) is keeping its hands off the sex scandal involving Novaliches Diocese Bishop Teodoro Bacani and his former secretary.
Officials of the Archdiocese of Cebu also preferred to stay silent, but some said there might be other motives behind the allegations hurled against Bacani.
Cebu Archbishop Ricardo Cardinal Vidal said he will wait for church officials in Manila to issue a statement.
A major policy of the Catholic Church is to directly turn over cases involving ranking Church leaders directly to the Vatican, said Cotabato Archbishop Orlando Quevedo, CBCP president.
That’s why Papal Nuncio Antonio Franco is the one handling the case.
“A case that involves a bishop is referred to the Vatican. It’s always a working principle in such case to ensure and present (the case) with utmost confidentiality for the sake of the parties involved,” Quevedo said in his issued statement.
US trip
Bacani left for the United States Monday after a heart-to-heart meeting with his colleagues in the Diocese of Novaliches.
He would be seeking medical attention for his diabetes and would also use the occasion in visiting his ailing mother.
His statement was read to the parishioners all throughout the scheduled Sunday masses, conveying his apologies over what happened.
He likewise appealed to the public not to prejudge the case.
Bacani, 63, was accused of sexual harassment by his secretary at the St. Peter’s parish in his diocese in Novaliches, Quezon City.
The Philippine Catholic Church has admitted that some 200 priests were investigated for sexual misconduct over the past 20 years, some of whom were dismissed while most resigned voluntarily.
Former rector
The former rector of the Basilica del Sto. Niño in Cebu also faced a complaint for acts of lasciviousness filed by a former altar boy. The complaint, however, was dismissed by the prosecutor’s office.
Bacani, who is known for his support for the poor and his campaign against the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos, was in Cebu for the episcopal ordination of Cebu Auxiliary Bishop Isabelo “Boy” Abarquez and Bishop Patricio Buzon last February.
President Arroyo called for sobriety and said the government will not intervene in the case “unless there is a culpable violation of law.”
Bacani quietly left for the US early yesterday after issuing an open letter that said he was “deeply sorry for the consequences of any inappropriate expression of affection to my secretary.”
The woman, a former member of the staff of Bacani’s diocese, lodged a complaint with the official representative of Pope John Paul II in Manila, alleging an unsolicited sexual advance by Bacani on March 23.
Expulsion
Msgr. Romualdo Ranada, a spokesman for the diocese, told ABS-CBN that the bishop apologized “because some people are shocked, some are hurt, some are weeping.”
The papal nuncio, the Vatican’s envoy to the country, interviewed both the bishop and his accuser, and reported to the Congregation of Bishops in Rome, which will weigh the testimonies and decide on a course of action “that would be best for the people and the Church,” Ranada said.
At worst, Bacani could be expelled or forced to resign, Ranada said, even as he stressed the beleaguered bishop was innocent.
No criminal case has been filed against Bacani, he added.
Cebu Archdiocesan media liaison officer Msgr. Achilles Dakay said the allegations could have been made just to discredit the church during a very crucial time for them.
For the past week, leaders of the Roman Catholic Church in the Philippines have been campaigning intensely to the Catholic faithful to condemn and fight House Bill (HB) 4110, or the Reproductive Health Care Act of 2002.
“It’s just a speculation but ang timing ba…it came out when the church is fighting and stopping lawmakers from approving HB 4110. Maybe it is meant to distract the attention of the people and to discredit the church and its leaders,” Dakay told Sun.Star. (Sunnex/AFP)/LCR)
(June 10, 2003 issue)
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