LAGDAMEO: ARROYO CORRUPT, PEOPLE ARE HUNGRY

Strongest condemnation yet by bishops

Lagdameo: Arroyo corrupt, people are hungry
By Dona Pazzibugan
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 05:43:00 10/29/2008


MANILA, Philippines-The president of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) has disputed the Arroyo administration's claim of economic progress and condemned corruption in government.

"Twenty million hungry Filipinos will disagree with the proclaimed "ramdam ang kaunlaran (progress is felt)" with their own experience: "Ramdam ang kahirapan, ramdam ang gutom (Poverty is felt, hunger is felt)," Jaro Archbishop Angel Lagdameo said Tuesday.

"The benefits of the much-proclaimed economic growth are not felt by the masses," the CBCP president said in a statement which he issued jointly with three other bishops and vocal administration critic, Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Oscar Cruz.

Asked by reporters later if he thought that President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo was corrupt, Lagdameo unhesitatingly said "yes."

Asked if the President deserved to be removed from power, he said "the answer should come from the people who see what's happening in our country."

Lagdameo told a press conference that the statement, which called for "immediate reforms," was the product of "communal discernment" with Cruz, Masbate Bishop Joel Baylon, Banga-Bataan Bishop Socrates Villegas and Legazpi Bishop Emeritus Jose Sorra.

Social and moral cancer

"In the past few years up to today, we have watched how corruption has become endemic, massive, systemic and rampant in our politics. Corruption is a social and moral cancer," said Lagdameo, who clarified that he was making the statement as the archbishop of Jaro and not as the CBCP president.

"In response to the global economic crisis and the pitiful state of our country, the time to rebuild our country economically, socially, politically is now," Lagdameo said.

New government

"The time to start radical reforms is now. The time for moral regeneration is now. The time to conquer complacency, cynicism and apathy and to prove that we have matured from our political disappointments is now.

"The time to prepare a new government is now," he said.

Villegas stressed that they were not calling for another mass revolt.

"We are making this statement because we believe that if we had been less corrupt we would be better prepared to face the impending global crisis. The problem of the Philippines is not population, the problem is corruption," Villegas said.

Soul troublemakers

"We are not social troublemakers, we are soul troublemakers. We want to disturb consciences. then the change that we want in government and society will really come from within us," he said.

Cruz said it was the "strongest statement" that Lagdameo had made so far during his incumbency, "the most straight language written, as straight as it could be."

The CBCP has been divided over directly challenging Ms Arroyo over allegations of corruption.

In February at the height of the scandal over the aborted $329-million National Broadband Network deal with China's ZTE Corp., the CBCP called a special plenary meeting but did not ask for the President's resignation.

The CBCP instead "strongly condemned the culture of corruption from the top to the bottom of our social and political order."

Classification: UNCLASSIFIED
Caveats: NONE