All institutions are prone to corruption and to the vices of their members.
– Morris West (Australian Novelist 1916-1999)
Here is an interesting BBC news item, we hope the Philippine leadership take note and act upon speedily as would any upcoming Presidential hopeful in 2016!
Despite President Aquino making his own comments about the Catholic Church in the Philippines, more importantly, the Pork Barrel PPAF, Napoles etc scandals still persist despite promises from Filipino leaders to deal with!
We hope His Holiness’s words will be heeded !
Pope Francis urges Philippine Government Leaders To End Corruption
Pope Francis urges Philippine Government Leaders To End Corruption
Pope Francis travelled to Manila’s Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in his ‘Popemobile’ on FridayOn the first full day of his five-day visit, he called for politicians to show commitment to the “common good”.
But President Benigno Aquino responded that many Catholic clergy had been silent about the abuses conducted under former President Gloria Arroyo.
And he said some clergymen were now too quick to criticise him.
“In contrast to their previous silence, some members of the clergy now seem to think that the way to be true to the faith means finding something to criticise,” he said.
“Even to the extent that one prelate admonished me to do something about my hair, as if it were a mortal sin.”
The pontiff arrived in the majority Catholic country on Thursday and is due to travel to the typhoon-hit city of Tacloban on Saturday.
The centre-piece of his visit is an open-air Mass in Manila on Sunday, which is expected to attract millions.
The Pope is on a six-day tour of Asia. Earlier in the week he visited Sri Lanka.
‘Voice of the poor’
The Pope received a rapturous reception as he arrived in ManilaSpeaking at a welcome ceremony in the presidential palace, Pope Francis called for leaders “to reject every form of corruption, which diverts resources from the poor”.
He said it was a Christian duty to “break the bonds of injustice and oppression which give rise to glaring, and indeed scandalous, social inequalities”.
The Philippines, like many countries in Asia, has corruption issues.
Corruption activist group Transparency International put the Philippines at 85 in its latest Corruption Perceptions Index, level with India, Sri Lanka and Thailand.
Under Mr Aquino, the Philippines’ record has slowly improved.
Mr Aquino suggested the Church had not done enough to fight corruption under Mrs Arroyo, who is facing charges of plundering state funds and election fixing.
“There was a true test of faith when many members of the Church, once advocates for the poor, the marginalised, and the helpless, suddenly became silent in the face of the previous administration’s abuses, which we are still trying to rectify to this very day,” Mr Aquino said.
Many people began waiting outside the cathedral in Manila for the Mass in the early hours of Friday
President Benigno Aquino (R) hosted a welcome ceremony for the Pope at the presidential palace on Friday.