Bishops break tradition, back JC de los Reyes candidacy

Breaking with tradition, six Catholic bishops have announced their support for Ang Kapatiran party standard bearer JC de los Reyes, calling his party "the conscience vote for 2010."

Lipa Archbishop Ramon Arguelles, Bishops Antonio Tobias of Novaliches, Joseph Nacua of Ilagan, Antonio Palang of San Jose de Mindoro, Vicente Navarra of Bacolod, and retired Bishop Teodoro Bacani have declared support for De los Reyes, who is an outspoken critic of the controversial Reproductive Health (RH) Bill. The news story posted on the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) Website on Saturday explained that the move of the six prelates was a break from "the tradition of offering commentary on election-related moral issues without endorsing candidates." Although it has its followers not to vote for candidates advocating the Reproductive Health bill, the Catholic Church as a whole has never openly endorsed a political candidate. Last weekend, the CBCP Website posted an earlier article announcing that Archbishop Arguelles and Bishop Navarra had endorsed the candidacies of delos Reyes and his senatorial slate. (See: 2 bishops endorse Ang Kapatiran party) On Friday, the AKP provided GMANews.TV with a statement stating that five more bishops had likewise expressed support for de los Reyes and his entire slate, in addition to the first two prelates. Among the five was Bishop Joel Zamudio Baylon of Legazpi, Albay. The CBCP clarified on Saturday, however, that Baylon had only described the AKP as having "a clean government platform... but stopped short of directly endorsing Ang Kapatiran." ‘Conscience vote for 2010’ The bishops said the AKP platform "was formed based on Christian precepts [and] is worth supporting by any intelligent Catholic." "I hope that it will catch fire in the imagination and hearts of our formation of this political party. I hope people would join it in great numbers and promote it among fellow Filipinos," Bacani said. Tobias also referred to the party as "the conscience vote for the 2010 elections." "The Kapatiran [Party] stands on principles for the common good, not on personalities. That is the way of genuine representation in government," added Nacua. Arguelles, who earlier announced that the Catholic Church would not engage in partisan politics, defied tradition by being one of the first to openly endorse the party. “We will stand by our position. We really have to do something now and be sincere [about] what is happening in our country," Arguelles said. Meanwhile, Navarra said his endorsement of Ang Kapatiran was "a matter of conscience" and that he was "standing for what is right and necessary." Arguelles added that Bishop Palang had also given his all-out support for de los Reyes and his party mates.
Mouthpiece "We remain humble with the gestures of the bishops to come out openly for the party’s principles and platforms. And if we may quote a pastoral advice from Bishop Navarra, he says in his text message to us [that we must] not glory in numbers. Rather, let us glory that God works mysteriously in the hearts if his people," the party said in a statement. De los Reyes has underscored his "pro-life" stance on reproductive health, openly condemning sex education in schools for allegedly promoting promiscuity and immorality among the young. Ang Kapatiran has been advocating platforms based on the Church’s social doctrine, which includes the hardline stance of de los Reyes against the Reproductive Health bill. AKP president Eric Manalang told GMANews.TV the bishops might support them by acting as their "mouthpiece." But he clarified that the support was not just for de los Reyes alone but for the party’s advocacies as well. Manalang said the AKP had been courting the prelates for support since November last year. He said it was important for the party to win the clergy’s support since their influence could deliver votes for AKP candidates. “We don’t have billions. We don't have actors and actresses to endorse us. But the bishops will serve as our mouthpiece to reach the people," Manalang said. ‘Don't divide priests’ In a phone interview with GMANews.TV, retired archbishop and canon lawyer Oscar Cruz noted that while his colleagues did not violate any laws, they should not support any candidate to avoid “[dividing] not just the people but also the priests." Cruz also stressed that despite the flurry of bishops’ endorsements for the AKP, the powerful Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) will not endorse any candidate. In a separate interview, Palang confirmed that he supports the AKP’s platforms and principles. But he clarified that this was not the same as endorsing de los Reyes and his senatorial slate. “Sa katunayan hindi ko pa masyadong kilala ‘yan [de los Reyes] but based on [Arguelles’ suggestion] maganda record nila (In truth I’m not very familiar yet with de los Reyes but based on Arguelles’ suggestion, I find their record good)," Palang said, adding that he wanted to know more about the party’s candidates. When asked how he plans to help the AKP in the elections, Palang said he might convince his fellow priests and his constituents to support the party. Catholic vote The Philippines is a predominantly Roman Catholic nation, with at least 81 percent of 90 million Filipinos professing to be Catholic. However, even the bishops failed to agree whether there is a so-called Catholic vote. "There is no such thing," Cruz said, adding that "the Catholics have been very democratic as far as politics is concerned. Tingnan mo na lang yung mga kandidato, eh halos lahat ‘yan Katoliko pero sila mismo nag-aaway-away (Just look at the candidates. Almost all of them are Catholic but they are fighting among themselves)," Cruz said. But Palang thought otherwise, saying that given the Church’s vast influence, it could persuade the faithful to vote for their chosen candidates. "The Church is very influential. Don’t ever underestimate its power. Just look at [the influence of the late] Cardinal Sin." Jaime Sin, the Filipino cardinal who served as Manila archbishop for almost 30 years from 1974 to 2003, was of the most influential forces behind the People Power street uprising that toppled two Philippine Presidents — Ferdinand Marcos in 1986 and Joseph Ejercito Estrada in 2001. Meanwhile, Palang said Arguelles had told him that more bishops were expected to rally behind the AKP, including Manila Auxiliary Bishop Broderick Pabillo. But on Saturday, the AKP quoted Pabillo as denying claims he planned to support de los Reyes’s party. — TJD/MDM/JV/NPA, GMANews.TV