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Showing posts with label priest in politics. Show all posts
Politics as Vocation, Priesthood as a Fallback Career?
4:30 AMPolitics as vocation, Priesthood as Fallback Career?
I don't know about you, but my Jesuit Catholic upbringing and what I know of priests and priesthood is telling me that there is something very wrong with the idea that IF he gets the full dispensation from the Pope, IF he runs for the presidency in 2010 and IF he loses, Governor Ed Panlilio will by all means try to reclaim his priesthood, and IF the CBCP decides against it, he will contest that decision. IF.
Yes, I know all of these are still in the “IF” stages, and I already said much about the infamous “iffishness” of the priest-governor.
My point now is this:
There is nothing minutely spiritual, or moral about Panlilio’s scheme of near-future events. I fail to see his “love for priesthood” over all of this. What is crystal clear is this: Panlilio is, effectively and blatantly trying to make the priestly vocation as nothing more than a fallback career. He wants to get the most out of both worlds!
His decision to seek dispensation for what he claims to be for the “love of country” -- yes, even at the current IF stage -- is the ultimate manifestation that he had chosen the material realm over the spiritual. For Panlilio, the State had become more important than the Church. He now wants to serve the government of man over the government of God. Worldly politics is Panlilio’s new vocation.
In basic organizational principle, to preserve the cohesiveness and unity within, a member who openly violates, no longer believe or adhere to the basic principles of that organization are either asked to resign, or is expelled. In Panlilio’s case, he was lucky to have Archbishop Paciano Aniceto as his immediate superior.
With utmost forbearance, Apung Ceto only suspended Panlilio of his priestly functions despite the latter’s willful disobedience to him as his bishop and for violating the Canon Law.
Back then Panlilio promised Apung Ceto that it will just be for three years.
Also back then, the archbishop must have seen the people’s clamor for Panlilio to run, saw how the laity and even non-Catholics were inspired and were drawn closer to God because of this. There was something positive about Panlilio’s candidacy.
But now, whatever was good about Panlilio’s entry in the political realm in 2007 was already replaced and overwhelmed by the bad. The bishops are very much aware of the growing disillusionment, demoralization, confusion and even the pain that Panlilio is causing the people of Pampanga especially those from the ranks of his once most loyal and committed supporters. They know that something wrong is happening to Among Ed.
Our dear Kapampangan bishops seem to have used every possible means to discourage Among Ed against his political plans. In private, I can imagine that they have done prayer sessions, intercessions, consultations, dialogues. All these obviously did not work.
Perhaps to apply more pressure and to wake Panlilio from his dreamlike state, the Church hierarchy was compelled to openly criticize and reject Panlilio’s plans. (See “Panlilio: It’s back to priesthood if he loses”, PDI, July 21, 2009; “Panlilio angers prelates, Superiors Reject Fr. Ed’s plan to run for president”, PDI July 10, 2009)
Here’s a thought: I think everyone from the Church whose opinion should matter to Among Ed already did what they can to keep him away from the enticing, head-swelling, vanity-building world of politics and of man.
The Gov. Ed Panlilio that you now see is a different man from the Among Ed that we all loved.
I say for the sake of the Roman Catholic Church, for unity and to protect all the Catholics from more shame, shock and demoralization whenever the politician Ed Panlilio blatantly disregard and disrespect you, our dear Bishops, let him be.
Let him be a man of this world that he so chooses to be. Let him learn from his own mistakes and to face the consequences of his own actions.
But don’t, please, allow him to make the priesthood a fallback career.
ACT DUMB
9:05 PMACT DUMB
Gov. Ed Panlilio said that it hit him that politicians “get kinder” when election time draws near. It’s but natural for any person, not just politicos like himself, to put their better foot forward when they are after something.
Ito naman si Among oh, parang hindi tao na naghangad,nangarap o umibig.
I am certain that at some point of his life, he did his own share of wooing, and took efforts to look and act his best, make the best impression, especially if there were competitors vying for the sweet “yes” of the lucky lady.
When he was running for governor in 2007, his image makers worked wonderful miracles so he would look his kindest, nicest and cleanest.
Also, back then, I remember he was always naturally very kind to Jun and Lolita Hizon and their children - Darius (his chief security), Barangay Chair Jomar, Doll and the rest of the Hizon Clan in whose houses (4) he stayed during the campaign & after the election, the lady volunteers (Myrna Bituin, Tess Guanzon, Agnes Romero, Leleng Santiago, Tess Briones, Tootsie Herrera, Nina Saplala, Nina Tomen, Janet Mallari, Lilian Limjoco, among others), Rene Romero and all the other big financial backers - of course the Davids of Betis (Bishop Ambo, Atty. Dante David, Randy). The men I saw with him every evening - Marny Castro, Tatang Fer Caylao, the ex-seminarians and youth volunteers - Archie Reyes, Rop Syquia, Alex Pineda, Ave Laquindanum Patrick Guanzon, Noynoy Santiago, John Sambo, and many others.
Sadly, though, like most wooers who make promises of sun and moon, they fall short, and worst, renege.
KUDOS is in order to Atty. Vivian Dabu for finally getting her salaries. So all this time she is not getting her salary, she is a volunteer staff of the government? Double congratulations to her and Among Ed for probably avoiding possible legal repercussions for holding too much power despite the “volunteer” status. Or am I speaking too soon?
POINT IS, THERE IS NO POINT
What really is the point of the well-crafted July 1 PUNTO! story of Panlilio’s friend Ms. Tonette Orejas on “PRIEST in POLITICS: No graft in 2 years”?
That priests are able to resist temptations, they live simply and they are good at making sacrifices? Ok copy. But aren’t these some of the basic traits any priest, not just Among Ed, should have for them to actually become priests? And with his campaign line of moral, ethical and responsible leadership, the Capampangans were made only to expect as much and maybe even more.
That “Pwede pala!”, a graft-free government is doable, or that it is doable because the leader is a priest? Come on, pari nga sya eh. If there is any current government office in any part of this country that should be graft free, it is that one ran by a priest-governor. Why would he allow it?
But wait, why is the leadership standard limited to plain and simple living? Why not excellence, professionalism and effective governance?
CONDESCENDING: By implication, nakakalungkot itong mga realizations ni Among Ed sa dalawang taon niyang paglalaro sa Capitolio. It is a reflection of one or two things about the priest-politician: one, he feigns ignorance about the man’s nature at the expense of others. Two: he probably thinks all the employees of the Capitol are corrupt and inefficient that he is so amazed about the fact the “Pwede pala!” silang maging malinis at masipag.
Ano ba yan!
Lowering the Bar
4:04 PM
LOWERING THE BAR
WHERE do we develop our values?
At home. In school. Good friends. Ideal mentors.
When we were young and we were caught telling a lie, sinasabon ang mga bibig namin. My younger brother was caught smoking and Papa had him eat the whole stick of cigarette.
It is an issue of reward and punishment. You do bad, lagot ka. So the issue of how we treat corrupt officials -- jail them, shame them, sue them etc. -- is very important for the young ones to develop a strong sense of what is right and what is wrong especially now that many parents are busy making a living or separating from each other.
I read a statement that Among Ed was one of the two presidential aspirants at the ANC Leadership Forum a couple of weeks ago who mentioned that THE DECLINE OF CORRECT VALUES has destroyed the Philippine society.
I believe this, too.
But leaders, especially presidential aspirants who preach and wish to claim the moral upper-hand like Among Ed should lead by example and not by mere words.
He has to answer for the many questionable things he has done while a governor of Pampanga. He must come clean with the omission of the names of his financial contributors and their actual contributions in the list that he submitted to COMELEC in 2007. It is not enough to state ambiguously that his accountants and lawyers have “ironed it out” with the COMELEC.
He must apologize for lying about the P500,000 he received in the parking lot of Malacañang -- the bundle of money he admitted he got (only after he was asked by a reporter-friend), the same “dirty money” as he presented it to the media and later the Senators, the bundle of money he claimed he never touched, but admitted a year later, and only after his former aide squealed, that he authorized the use of P20,000 of it. Ano pong moral value ang mapupulot natin dito? Ang umamin lamang kapag napansin na at wala nang lusot?
Are we to just forget about these things and conveniently dismiss them as mere lapses of judgment just so we can perfectly fit Among Ed to our idea of a moral leader, one who will lead the country’s moral revolution? Huwag naman po.
I feel I must quote from an email that I received last week, one by a Rodolfo Paglinawan who brilliantly captured my sentiments on the lowering of both the moral and governance standards just so we can install the priest-politician who for some, SEEMS to offer what our country needs.
Wrote Mr. Paglinawan: “What has Ed Panlilio done to make Pampanga a model province - that we now should elect him president? Increased revenues? But that is what every governor is expected to do… But crowning a man for complying with his basic job description? Boy let us not lower the bar. The minimum requirement for any government employee is public trust, as public office is public trust.
Pampanga’s cities are faced with a population growth higher than national average. By what record proportions has he increased investments and employment opportunities to cope with the increased human density? ...Does he have any flagship projects? Has he increased the number of schools, build more markets, farm-to-market roads and bridges, and post-harvest facilities? What about crime? How dramatic has been the drop in crime rate? Has he eradicated illegal gambling in the province? Has he even minimized it? What about agricultural increments, has there been any perks? Where is the bumper harvest that he has helped create? What about tax collection, other than from gravel and sand? Is there any capability-building programs and attendant infrastructure that have been built to increase employability of its residents, within and without Pampanga? What about tourism? What about improvements in health and social services?
With Ed Panlilio, what direction of change will he take us? For now, without categorical answers to my questions above, it is more like a game of chance, not change.
This man is playing ‘jueteng’ with our minds.
What the Philippines deserve today is a clear road map from presidentiables, supported by established and concrete and historical proof of achievement. Indeed, we are in biblical times - We need a national leader who has built his reputation on rock-solid foundations with scars and track records to show, and Governor Panlilio has yet built his reputation on sand and gravel.
What the Philippines need today is a Nehemiah who besides moral ascendancy, can rise over divisions, inspire volunteerism and sacrifice, and rebuild the walls of our modern-day Jerusalem. Governor Panlilio cannot even put his provincial act together, as most local government officials are not on his side.
So puede ba, Panlilians, run around the block for half an hour and afterwards, reward yourselves with a cold shower. If that still don’t earn you an honest epiphany on this issue, just like one advertisement - face the bathroom mirror, slap yourselves twice across your face for thank God you needed that!”
WHERE do we develop our values?
At home. In school. Good friends. Ideal mentors.
When we were young and we were caught telling a lie, sinasabon ang mga bibig namin. My younger brother was caught smoking and Papa had him eat the whole stick of cigarette.
It is an issue of reward and punishment. You do bad, lagot ka. So the issue of how we treat corrupt officials -- jail them, shame them, sue them etc. -- is very important for the young ones to develop a strong sense of what is right and what is wrong especially now that many parents are busy making a living or separating from each other.
I read a statement that Among Ed was one of the two presidential aspirants at the ANC Leadership Forum a couple of weeks ago who mentioned that THE DECLINE OF CORRECT VALUES has destroyed the Philippine society.
I believe this, too.
But leaders, especially presidential aspirants who preach and wish to claim the moral upper-hand like Among Ed should lead by example and not by mere words.
He has to answer for the many questionable things he has done while a governor of Pampanga. He must come clean with the omission of the names of his financial contributors and their actual contributions in the list that he submitted to COMELEC in 2007. It is not enough to state ambiguously that his accountants and lawyers have “ironed it out” with the COMELEC.
He must apologize for lying about the P500,000 he received in the parking lot of Malacañang -- the bundle of money he admitted he got (only after he was asked by a reporter-friend), the same “dirty money” as he presented it to the media and later the Senators, the bundle of money he claimed he never touched, but admitted a year later, and only after his former aide squealed, that he authorized the use of P20,000 of it. Ano pong moral value ang mapupulot natin dito? Ang umamin lamang kapag napansin na at wala nang lusot?
Are we to just forget about these things and conveniently dismiss them as mere lapses of judgment just so we can perfectly fit Among Ed to our idea of a moral leader, one who will lead the country’s moral revolution? Huwag naman po.
I feel I must quote from an email that I received last week, one by a Rodolfo Paglinawan who brilliantly captured my sentiments on the lowering of both the moral and governance standards just so we can install the priest-politician who for some, SEEMS to offer what our country needs.
Wrote Mr. Paglinawan: “What has Ed Panlilio done to make Pampanga a model province - that we now should elect him president? Increased revenues? But that is what every governor is expected to do… But crowning a man for complying with his basic job description? Boy let us not lower the bar. The minimum requirement for any government employee is public trust, as public office is public trust.
Pampanga’s cities are faced with a population growth higher than national average. By what record proportions has he increased investments and employment opportunities to cope with the increased human density? ...Does he have any flagship projects? Has he increased the number of schools, build more markets, farm-to-market roads and bridges, and post-harvest facilities? What about crime? How dramatic has been the drop in crime rate? Has he eradicated illegal gambling in the province? Has he even minimized it? What about agricultural increments, has there been any perks? Where is the bumper harvest that he has helped create? What about tax collection, other than from gravel and sand? Is there any capability-building programs and attendant infrastructure that have been built to increase employability of its residents, within and without Pampanga? What about tourism? What about improvements in health and social services?
With Ed Panlilio, what direction of change will he take us? For now, without categorical answers to my questions above, it is more like a game of chance, not change.
This man is playing ‘jueteng’ with our minds.
What the Philippines deserve today is a clear road map from presidentiables, supported by established and concrete and historical proof of achievement. Indeed, we are in biblical times - We need a national leader who has built his reputation on rock-solid foundations with scars and track records to show, and Governor Panlilio has yet built his reputation on sand and gravel.
What the Philippines need today is a Nehemiah who besides moral ascendancy, can rise over divisions, inspire volunteerism and sacrifice, and rebuild the walls of our modern-day Jerusalem. Governor Panlilio cannot even put his provincial act together, as most local government officials are not on his side.
So puede ba, Panlilians, run around the block for half an hour and afterwards, reward yourselves with a cold shower. If that still don’t earn you an honest epiphany on this issue, just like one advertisement - face the bathroom mirror, slap yourselves twice across your face for thank God you needed that!”
Bistado
3:13 PMWhat a bummer it must have been for the handful dreamers of an “Among Pres” (Father President) in 2010 had they imagined that the ANC Leadership Forum held at Ateneo last week may just be the perfect opportunity to showcase and promote their manok.
Well, ideally, it should, kung may ibubuga ang nasabing manok.
For one, it is a free 2-hour prime time TV exposure with a fairly wide captive audience especially from the upper/middle class professional/intellectual folks here and abroad who are also potential big-time funders, influential opinion shapers, campaigners and volunteers. Added bonus too is that the questions seem to have been given in advance (which explains how the slow-to-discern Panlilio went sleepless over the question of PGMA’s positive contribution to our country) giving the guests the opportunity to deliver their best President-material responses and perhaps minimize the generic motherhood, ill-conceived and even goofy statements.
Having some idea of how grueling any public face-off / battle-of-Presidential-wits under the close scrutiny of intellectuals, experts and professionals can get, the lead dreamer/convener of the Panlilio-for-President Utopian Society could have called for a mock-Question and Answer session with their manok thereby making sure that he will come out of the battle victorious and worthy of the hallowed pedestal that they had him installed. But since they obviously did not, ayan tuloy, nangamote. Kawawa naman.
The commentaries of national columnists and online bloggers after the forum somewhat demonstrates my point. Almost in unison, the general sentiment was: THERE IS NO WAY THAT THIS PRIEST CAN BE THE NEXT PHILIPPINE PRESIDENT.
Clearly unimpressed, the ever-sharp Amado Doronila of PDI concluded that all the aspirants where opportunistic and would grab every chance, even Manny Pacquiao’s fame and fortune, to get their hands on the presidency. Talk about the claims over Panlilio being the ‘real alternative’ presidential candidate!
Also incisive but more direct was the comments of Herman Tiu Laurel of The Daily Tribune. He wrote: “Then, there’s that newcomer whom everybody knows is kicking himself upstairs because he failed to fulfill the expectations of his provincemates who helped secure his fluke of a slim win, who wouldn’t be able to win again given his situation today. This fellow, a priest, is sadly possessed of a hyperbolic perception of his own significance, who clings to an ideology that is too limited to the anti-corruption issue, betraying an ignorance or denial of neo-colonialism, as well as corporatocratic feudalism as the real problems of this country.” OUCH!
Mr. Tony Lopez of the Manila Times wrote his take on Panlilio: “Retired priest, Ed Panlilio, the governor of Pampanga, sounded like he didn’t want (he gave a lot of “ifs”) to join Pacquiao but he didn’t have the mental honesty to say so on prime time TV. Ricky Carangdang asked the right question when he asked Governor Panlilio why so many people in Pampanga hate him. The governor ducked the question by saying many other people also like him. What Carangdang didn’t ask the good padre is why is it the nearly the entire Pampanga officialdom doesn’t like Panlilio, which says a lot about his style of governance. The ANC anchor also didn’t ask Panlilio what gives him the right to run for president when he seems to have made a mess of running the Pampanga provincial government. And why does he give so many conditions before he could be convinced to run. Is he a frontrunner? Surveys don’t even sniff his name among the top-of-the mind choices of voters for president. To me, Father Panlilio is simply on an ego trip. He is not a viable presidential candidate. He has very little chances of winning. Right now, he is not even sure of winning reelection in his native Pampanga.” OUCH! OUCH!
Fernando Gagelonia posted on midfield.blogspot.com, “Panlilio was the least impressive alternately sounding like the man of the cloth that he still is, while grappling with the intricacies of vested-interest local politics in his native Pampanga.”
From Gov. Panlilio’s responses on the 10-minute one-on-one interview with Ricky, it is clear that what’s keeping the suspended priest from finally seeking dispensation from the Vatican or to resign from the priesthood is really no longer about his love for the vocation as he piously and repeatedly declared in the not so distant past.NOW, THE TRUTH IS OUT: IT IS REALLY JUST ABOUT THE MONEY!
Ricky: What are the factors that will make you decide kung tatakbo talaga kayo?Gov. Ed: Wala tayong pera, Ricky eh… Kung tutulungan ako, if this will snowball, then I might go for it.
Hay naku, Among Ed, with the way you treated your campaign donors, fellow Crusaders, supporters, volunteers, staff, friends and relatives after THEY installed you into power, how can you expect a nationwide snowballing of support? With less than a year to prove that you were worth the sacrifice and the votes of the people of Pampanga, what have you got to show for it?
Hay naku, Among Ed, with the way you treated your campaign donors, fellow Crusaders, supporters, volunteers, staff, friends and relatives after THEY installed you into power, how can you expect a nationwide snowballing of support? With less than a year to prove that you were worth the sacrifice and the votes of the people of Pampanga, what have you got to show for it?
We all reap what we sow.You sow disunity among the people, contempt and suspicion of any elected official who refuses to kowtow to you, and you consistently listen only to the voice of – no, not God’s, but his own and that of his goddess. Ganun na ba talaga kayo kagaling ngayon, Gov?
If there is one really good thing the ANC Leadership Forum did for its viewers, it is this: IT HELPED EXPOSE GOVERNOR PANLILIO FOR WHAT HE TRULY IS AND WHAT HE CLEARLY IS NOT.
Political Participation as a Christian Obligation
11:59 AM
Political Participation as a Christian Obligation
In their better mood, I am called a pakialamero by some erring government officials who wish to keep their questionable public performances, well, private. It gets me into minor, and, once or twice, major trouble. Some say it’s because of the way I do things, my approach, how I attack given problem(s) at hand to get necessary things done. I suppose I am a pakialamero -- I meddle, poke and nose and find ways for the people to whom they are most accountable to, find out, makialam themselves and let the public be their judge and, where necessary, their executioner.
No, I am not running for any public office in 2010. Been there, done that. Being in public service since 1967, I would fall under the category of some as a traditional politician, although I will insist that not all traditional politicians are bad, in the same way that not everything traditional, conventional or customary is evil.
But let this column not be about me, or, God forbid, an apologist write-up for “trapos”, to which I was not long ago unfairly accused of. Let this column be about all of us, citizens of this poor but a country and people that deserves the best, and our role, paano tayong lahat makikialam, in the 2010 elections onwards.
Last week’s pastoral exhortation of CBCP President Archbishop Angel Lagdameo, D.D which he called Year of the Two Hearts for Peace-Building and Lay participation in Social Change reminded us of our Christian obligations in politics, to get organized, leading to positive and lasting changes for our people and country.
He said, “We challenge our Catholic laity, in particular, to take the lead in the task of moral renewal towards a deeper and more lasting change in the Philippine society. We challenge all lay people involved in politics to renounce corruption and bond together in the task of evangelizing politics for effective governance and the pursuit of the common good…We urge every Catholic lay person to give a concrete expression to Christian discipleship through responsible citizenship.”
I have always believed that WE ALL have a distinct and special role in the politics of nation building, one that must never start and end with the ballot during elections. This is how, together with a group of lay Catholics, we conceptualized Groups United to Serve God or GUTS in 1992. Bishop Teodoro C. Bacani, Jr mentioned GUTS in his book, Church in Politics, as a group with the “avowed purpose of asking Catholics in different parishes to make a united choice for the particular candidates the parishioners find deserving of election.”
GUTS is perhaps one “radical” approach in which without tinkering around or crossing the boundaries of the separation of church and state e.g. having the priest themselves run for public office, the Catholic Church and all other Christian faiths, for that matter, may exert their moral and spiritual role in building a nation led not of corrupt and incompetent government officials but by honest, God-fearing, competent and genuine public servants that are collectively and carefully chosen through an ala - US primary system by informed, enlightened and organized citizens. (Yes, we thought of adopting the “primaries” long before others did).
As much as the CBCP is encouraged by the rise in the call of the people for “moral regeneration” for our country, I am also personally excited by the fact that there are so many concerned groups and individuals who are formulating and working on ways towards finding just and lasting solution to the crisis of politics and governance in our country, some of them ‘hard-liners’ as my activist friend would say, but some are more realistic and open-minded. Now, if we could all work together and realize that real change can only happen when the do-gooders accept that the even traditional politicians can also contribute to nation building, mindful that there are good and bad politicians (traditional or pseudo-alternative) just as there are corrupt civil society members (like those who do not pay the correct taxes) and there are the real good ones.
Change can only happen when we all accept each other - take the bad with the good - believe in Redemption - give everybody a chance to reform like St Paul who was a murderer and formulate procedures where the fakes can be detected as soon as possible.
Yes, I am a pakialamero, even an idealist pakialamero, but I would rather be a pakialamero than a sleepless fence-sitter who knows that s/he can do something and contribute in improving the lives of many but dare not to.
