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 IMPAC T May 2007 / Vol 41 • No 5

CONTENTS
EDITORIAL
AT press time, the East Timorese are counting the
votes of the presidential elections that have been Corruption Not Population ......................................... 23
regarded as peaceful by foreign observers. And
this, despite a backdrop of a plummeting economy COVER STORY
and a new democracy bereft of mature political The Hidden Cost of Graft and Corruption ............. 16
experience.
But that’s not all. The presidential contenders
are so magnanimous one would think they just came
fresh from a holy retreat. Francisco Guterrez, for
instance, who is a former guerilla who spent years
in the jungles fighting Indonesian rule and who is
considered the underdog in this political race told

Cover photo by Denz Dayao

everybody after casting his vote: “I want to win
with dignity, but if I lose, I will also accept that
with dignity.” That puts all the politicians in the
Philippines, who never gets defeated but only
cheated, into shame.
On the other camp, the incumbent prime minis- ARTICLES
ter and presidential candidate Jose Ramos-Horta
goes with the dignity of a Nobel Prize winner, “If I Mass Communications: A Review of Philippine
win the election, I win a…huge responsibility. Church Media ................................................................... 4
But if I lose, I win my freedom to do whatever I
want, to be a writer, to be an academic, to be a What Corruption Has Done to the Filipino People .... 6
tourist, to travel.” You will never hear such
sensibility and, really, Christianity, from Filipino Ehem! Aha! Striving to Build a Graft-Intolerant
politicians. Culture................................................................................ 9
In Filipino that statement maybe aptly rendered
this way: “If I win the elections, I win a huge The Measurement of Corruption ............................... 21
contract in infrastructure, under-the-table ar- Salafist Islam Spawns Islamic Terrorism ............... 26
rangements, and remittances from gambling and
drugs…if I lose then I am STATEMENTS
cheated…therefore…bang, bang, bang!”
Sadly, in the Philippines good men do not be- A Pastoral Letter to Priests, Religious and the
come politicians. Faithful on the Forthcoming Elections ..................... 12
Sadly, too, in Philippine politics, what defines the
“art of governance” after getting elected is not the Reflection for Labor Day ............................................... 13
assumption of a “huge responsibility” but rather the Conscience, Competence, Commitment ................. 14
recovery of a “huge profit” and the return of
investment after buying votes and expensive airtime Pastoral Letter on the Upcoming 2007 Elections ... 15
in political ads.
In the Philippines, the cradle of crime and DEPARTMENTS
corruption is the election. One wins—or better Quote in the Act ................................................................ 2
buys—a political office at election time and dis-
penses his office by building an empire of machinery News Features ................................................................ 24
and money through crime and corruption in prepa-
ration for the next elections. And the cycle goes on From the Blogs ................................................................ 27
and on at the expense of the common good. From the Inbox ............................................................... 28
This issue is devoted to graft and corruption. In
our cover story, Archbishop Oscar Cruz, who con- Book Reviews .................................................................. 29
siders the advocacy against gambling and corrup-
tion as part of the Church’s mission in the world,
CINEMA Review ........................................................... 30
writes The Hidden Cost of Graft and Corruption. Quotes in Quiz ................................................................ 30
Read on.
News Briefs ...................................................................... 31
Volume 41 • Number 5 3
ARTICLES
Mass Communications:
A Review of Philippine
Church Media
By Fr. Ari Dy, SJ
T
he Word was made flesh and dwelt
among us.” We recite this line three
times a day as we pray the Angelus,
and thus we are reminded daily not only
that God became human in the Incarna-
tion, but that God came among us as The
Word. What is the significance of this
article of faith?
A word is not a word if it is not spoken
and heard, written and read. It is that simple.
If God is The Word, then God needs to be
communicated. This is the task of the Church,
and this is why Avery Cardinal Dulles says
that “The Church is communications.” Ev-
erything that we do in the Church is intended
to communicate the reality of God’s love and
compassion, to facilitate communion among
people and, between people and God.
Still, the Church has a specialized field
of endeavor called social communications.
It is one of many ministries in the Church, a
reality that has contributed to the attitude
that communications work is for the spe-
cialists rather than the concern of every
Christian. Even within the communications
ministry, it can be said that various indi-
viduals and groups are operating on their
own, without a common vision. This is why
other Christian churches have international
radio, TV, and multimedia networks that are
funded by their members, but the Catholic
Church, despite its size, has only limited
communications infrastructure in various
parts of the world.
In the Philippines, many have won-
dered why the Catholic Church has no
television station that is comparable to those
of other churches in the Philippines. There
are at least two Protestant churches with
4 IMPACT • May 2007
their own TV channels on free television,
and though they spend much time attack-
ing each other (a relief to Catholics because
one of them used to attack the Catholic
Church), their commitment to the use of
mass media for religious purposes is quite
commendable.
Fortunately, the Philippine Church is
slowly catching up. Since January 2006, TV
Maria has been on the air as a satellite
channel on the “Dream” network owned by
Mr. Antonio Cojuangco. The infrastruc-
ture has been provided for free by
Cojuangco, and the challenge is for TV
Maria to produce fresh programming for its
viewers and to increase its subscriber base.
TV Maria is the Catholic channel for the
entire Philippine Church, but the leadership
has been provided by the Archdiocese of
Manila. The various Catholic production
houses and diverse Catholic groups pro-
vide the programs for TV Maria, and some
efforts are underway to train young people
in writing and producing shows. The goal
to make TV Maria accessible to all teleview-
ers will only be realized once ways and
means are found to have it carried by all the
local and national cable networks.
TV Maria, because of its limited reach
at present, does not have the national im-
pact that other religious channels have.
There is much hope, however, in the com-
munity-based networks that are already in
place. The Archdiocese of San Fernando,
Pampanga, recently inaugurated the of-
fices and studios for its Archdiocesan Media
Apostolate Network Unlimited (Amanu).
For more than three years now, Amanu has
been producing “Men of Light” a weekly
talk show based on the Sunday readings
and hosted by three priests (Fr. Deo Galang,
Fr. Raul de los Santos, and Bishop Pablo
David). The show is carried by about 40
local cable stations throughout Pampanga
and many other cities in Luzon and the
Visayas. With creative and technical guid-
ance provided by Ms. Marilou Diaz Abaya
and Mr. Nonong Buencamino, Amanu is
able to train seminarians and lay people in
all aspects of TV production work.
Cebu and Sorsogon also have Catho-
lic shows or channels operating on local
cable channels.
On national television, some Catholic
production houses regularly contribute
programs to the commercial TV networks.
At present, ABC-5, also owned by
Cojuangco, has the most number of values-
oriented or religious shows. The Family
Rosary Crusade has a magazine-type show
that features Catholic news, lives of the
saints, and Gospel reflections. Every Sun-
day, ABC-5 has Catholic programming that
is not limited to the TV Mass that is already
a feature of all the national channels. Aside
from the TV Mass intended for the
Mass Communications:
homebound, ABC-5 has “Soul Mix,” which
features inspirational music videos; “Word
Made Flesh,” hosted by Salesian Fr. Jun
Lingad and the only Bible study show on
the air; and “Light Talk,” a talk show hosted
by Bishop Chito Tagle on the issues affect-
ing the nation today.
The seasons of Christmas and Lent are
natural occasions during which Catholic
shows are given more exposure. Last De-
cember 2006, ABC-5 pioneered the nine-
day primetime (11:00 p.m. with replay the
following day at 5:00 a.m.) TV Mass, as a
modern way of observing the “Simbang
Gabi.” For Holy Week 2007, ABC-5 co-
produced a 3-part “reality retreat” with Je-
suit Communications, and also featured
live coverage of the Paschal Triduum at the
Ateneo de Manila’s Church of the Gesu.
These are new contributions to the land-
scape of Philippine Church media.
The other national channels also have
their share of Catholic programming. Aside
from prayers at sign on and sign off, the
traditional “3 o’clock habit,” and the Sunday
TV Mass, most channels now feature reli-
gious shows during the Holy Week. The
A Review of Philippine
© Denz Dayao / CBCPMedia
“Seven Last Words” organized by the Na-
tional Shrine of St. Jude, St. James the Great
Parish in Alabang, and Sto. Domingo Church,
have been televised for a number of years.
The prayer rally of the Shalom community
has also been televised. Jesuit Communica-
tions has been producing Holy Week docu-
mentaries and specials for many years, some-
times in partnership with Bo Sanchez and his
group of lay preachers. The latter also has
a weekly show called “Kerygma TV.”
The “TV movie” genre is an emerging
trend. GMA-7 and its affiliate, QTV, has
produced stories for television that have a
decidedly Protestant approach to faith. The
last two Christmas seasons saw Jesuit Com-
munications producing TV narratives for
ABS-CBN-2. In 2005, there was “Maging
Akin Muli” a vocation story directed by
Marilou Diaz Abaya and starring Marvin
Agustin while in 2006, “Yes to Xmas”
chronicled the story of four kids who wanted
to ban Christmas in their town. With the
advances in digital technology and the
popularity of independent films, we might
yet see more “Catholic” stories produced
for cinema and television.
Church Media
Television productions require huge
amounts of money to produce and to air.
Notwithstanding the heroic efforts of Catho-
lic groups to be present on television, per-
haps radio is the more successful Catholic
mass media in the Philippines. The Catholic
Media Network headed by Fr. Francis Lucas
has more than thirty members across the
nation, all operating as community radio
stations using the language of their respec-
tive places, sharing programs in English
and Filipino, and making a direct impact in
their constituencies. At certain hours of the
day, the network has common program-
ming under the banner of “Veritas Pilipinas”
and can thus be considered a network with
national scope.
Radio Veritas, operated by the Arch-
diocese of Manila, is best known for its role
in the EDSA People Power revolution of
1986, but it is now making strides in becom-
ing an attractive alternative to AM listeners
in the Greater Manila area.
We have focused on TV and radio
because these can be considered “mass
communications,” media that reaches the
masses. As has happened in other coun-
tries, the Internet will also become a mass
medium in the Philippines. At the moment,
Catholic productions in the Philippines like
books and music can be purchased online,
but much more can be done in terms of
tapping the Internet as a way to communi-
cate with people. Blogs, podcasts, and vid-
eos are slowly being used by tech-savvy
ministers of the Gospel. Various services
like daily inspirational messages and music
downloads are also offered on the mobile
phone by entities like JesCom (text SEEK to
2346 to get the menu), Fr. Jerry Orbos, and
Fr. Jim Reuter.
Specialized Church media, like books,
magazines, videos and music albums, are
thriving in the Philippines. Most of the
members of the Asian Catholic Communi-
cators are in fact book publishers like the
Society of St. Paul, Shepherd’s Voice Pub-
lications, Claretians, Daughters of St. Paul,
Logos, Catholic Book Center, Jesuit Com-
munications, Word and Life, Salesiana,
Sinag Tala, and the UST Publishing House.
This review has outlined the various
Church Media available in the Philippines,
focusing on TV and radio. The lack of an
integrated approach to the media ministry
has at least given birth to a diverse range of
productions that are available to the Fili-
pino public. It is in our diversity that the
Word becomes flesh every day. I
(Fr. Ari Dy, SJ is the Chairman of the Asian Catholic
Communicators, Inc. (ACCI). For more information,
email ady@ateneo.edu.)
Volume 41 • Number 5 5
What Corruption Has Done to the Filipino People

I
n this day and age in our country,
corruption has become a way of life. It
has become so ingrained in our culture
that hardly anyone’s conscience is stung
when we see other people, organizations
and sectors being duped for the love of
money, honor and fame. It is no longer
seen as a plague or as a disease we should
eradicate and cure. It has become a means
and an instrument to reach goals.
Corruption as an instrument and as
a way of life has destroyed the lives of so
many people. And yet it continues to
thrive in our society.
Why does it seem like Filipinos don’t
do enough to combat corruption? Don’t
we know that its effects on us are direct
and extremely harmful?

Effects of corruption on children

Corruption has invaded our homes
and has threatened the very existence
and safety of even little children. Its
adverse effects on the young have far
reaching consequences.
One glaring example is how corrup-
tion has undermined the public school
system in the country to the point that
graduates of elementary schools can
hardly read or write. Cheating done in
the salaries of teachers and the budget
for the public school system has ad-
versely affected school-aged children.
It has deprived students of the neces-
sary skills and knowledge they need to
make it in life.
In addition, the lack of facilities and
materials in public schools has also long
been the subject of many debates and
arguments, but still, no palpable change
has been done. The corruption inflicted
on the public school system has become
a “normal” thing. Now when we speak of
the country’s public schools, it is “nor-
mally” perceived as low quality and infe-
rior. It’s just the way it is, most people
would say.
Another example of how corruption
has hurt children can be seen in the
effects of high priced medicines sup-
plied to health centers and local drug cines, vaccines, vitamins and painkillers Our efforts to nurture our children
stores. Due to corruption in the supply as instruments for their political cam- are rendered useless by corruption. The
and pricing mechanisms, medicines, vac- paign. Local officials, according to a very sectors and institutions that are
cines and vitamins needed by children report from the International Herald Tri- supposed to help us create a better fu-
who need nurturing, healing and cure bune in May 2006 (Mydans, Seth, 2006) ture for the children and youth of the
are overpriced, and thus, can’t be af- would hold medical missions during cam- country have been eaten up by corrup-
forded by poor families. paign season and give medicines away. tion that many of us have become re-
Another example of corruption that On ordinary days, medicines would be signed to the idea that all is “normal,”
has directly compromised the health of so expensive, and thus out of reach. even though corruption has killed and
children is the use of medicines as politi- Thus, poor children who need basic continues to kill young children, and
cal pork. According to Transparency health care are deprived of much needed those it has allowed to live, are given a
International, local politicians use medi- vitamins, vaccines and medicines. slim chance to do well in life.

6 IMPACT • May 2007


What Corruption
Has Done to the
Filipino People
By Lourdes Didith Mendoza-Rivera
Effects of corruption on our
livelihood
We sometimes fail to recognize that
indeed, corruption has directly and nega-
tively affected our livelihood, and conse-
quently our net income.
It may be hard to quantify, but for
those of us who are engaged in busi-
nesses where time is of the essence, cor-
ruption may play a huge role when it
comes to delays. For example, kickbacks
© Denz Dayao / CBCPMedia
made in infrastructure projects such as
roads and highways would mean that
road quality and safety are undermined if
the roads and highways are constructed
at all. For businesses such as farming or
sales that require delivery, these would
mean that delivery vehicles will not have
roads to get to their points of destination,
or where there are roads, deliveries would
be delayed because drivers would have
to contend with road pockmarks and holes,
floods and mud. This type of corruption
ARTICLES
also affects even those who go to offices
and are delayed on a regular basis due to
heavy traffic caused by poorly made
roads. These delays may equate to lost
hours for meetings and opportunities,
loss of remuneration for hourly paid work-
ers, etc. Corruption thus has a direct hand
in impeding our economic growth as indi-
viduals.
Corruption also can mean loss of
livelihood for some of us. There are many
cases wherein qualified applicants are
not given the opportunity to work in
various offices because somebody in-
side “knows somebody else who can do
the job.” This somebody can be a rela-
tive, a friend and may not have the quali-
ties the job demands, and yet would still
be hired because of his/her connections.
There are also cases where people are
hired in various offices because a high
ranking official owes them a favor. These
acts of corruption would correspond to a
lost of opportunity for qualified and de-
serving workers.
Effects of corruption on our
culture
Corruption has engendered a breed
of Filipinos that is apathetic to the plight
of the poor, the most affected by corrupt
practices. It has spawned a generation of
citizens who believe that corruption is
actually a victimless crime, unless a cor-
rupt act directly takes away their money,
time and honor. If they are not personally
harmed by corruption, most Filipinos
would not raise a hoot against it.
Eric Vincent Batalla in his article put
it succinctly (Philippine Daily Inquirer,
August 27, 2001) - “Corruption damages
the national psyche. It miseducates
people and tells them that there is nothing
wrong in being corrupt.” Maybe this is
the reason why corrupt celebrities never
even see the inside of a jailhouse and can
still build mansions to house their mis-
tresses, why questions of illegitimacy
hound this government, and why we cel-
ebrate thieves instead of urge them or
move them to restorative justice. We have
lost the ability to be outraged by graft,
deceit and lies.
Corruption as a way of life and an
instrument to reach goals has led people
to think that it is alright to do corrupt
practices because we all do it. It has given
us a wrong sense of oneness with others
because we think we’re doing something
that everybody else is doing. This “one-
ness” gives us a false sense of security
and lulls us to a stupor that has bred
Volume 41 • Number 5 7
What Corruption Has Done to the Filipino People
unfathomable nightmares for others, most
especially the poor. Corruption, aside from
robbing us blind physically and finan-
cially, has robbed us of our capacity to
feel and think morally and compassion-
ately.
The question is, given the direct and
extremely harmful effects of this way of
life of the Filipinos, how can change be
initiated?
Changing a corrupt lifestyle
To effectively change a way of life
requires great effort. Consequently, one
can imagine the labor it would take to
change or counter a society’s way of
doing things, which has been fully in-
grained into its culture.
Others have tried to counter corrup-
tion by pointing an accusing finger
against anyone but themselves. Others
have opted to go to the boondocks and
fight subversively. These efforts have
borne fruit, but they are not enough to
conquer an enemy as huge and as perva-
sive as corruption. As time goes on,
more people become embroiled in the
web of corruption as silent accomplices
or witnesses or even perpetrators.
This may be due to our failure to
recognize that corruption is not an exter-
nal enemy. It is not like a foe you can
punch senseless into nonexistence. The
enemy is not outside of us. When it
8 IMPACT • May 2007
comes to corruption, the enemy is us.
Most of us would say that unless we
directly connive, conspire, or initiate
theft, we are not committing corruption.
However, seeing the extent and perva-
siveness of the ill-effects of corruption,
aren’t we becoming passive conspira-
tors to a crime that victimizes all of us?
There is still hope, however. There
is a movement, initiated by the Philip-
pine Province of the Society of Jesus. It
is called “EHEM” and it aims to sensitize
every Filipino about corruption; it aims
to make people see that each one of us is
part of the web of corruption, and being
a part of it, we cause suffering and heart-
ache to other people.
EHEM! is a new approach to bat-
tling corruption. It moves us to reflect on
how we are both perpetrators and vic-
tims of corruption. It enables people to
look inward and see how their own ac-
tions contribute to the corruption of
other people and ultimately, of society.
It also enables people to reflect on their
own vulnerabilities, to see what makes
them susceptible to deceit, lies, dishon-
esty, and sleaze.
Those who have participated in nu-
merous EHEM seminars come home with
the conviction that corruption may
slowly be eradicated from our systems.
They have learned that fighting corrup-
tion doesn’t necessarily mean exposés
and daring-dos. Fighting corruption
doesn’t always mean confronting oth-
ers. It is actually, a never-ending con-
frontation of the self. It forces us to
pause and question the motives of our
actions. In the EHEM seminars, we call it
the ‘teka’ moment, the moment where we
pause and consider actions, and draw
upon our own reservoir of Christian and
Filipino values. It enables us to live and
act according to our conscience.
The way the EHEM! anti-corruption
campaign is gaining ground gives a glim-
mer of hope. All over the country, indi-
viduals and groups from both the pri-
vate and the public sector are signing
up. Those who have been touched by it
have been reaching out to others as well.
They support and inspire each other.
Through movements such as this,
we may still be able to counter the cur-
rent flow of deceit and corruption in our
midst. By forcing us to look within our
selves, both for faults and good values,
corruption may soon be defeated, and
we can start rebuilding our lives and our
society. Maybe, through movements
such as this which forces us to look
within ourselves in order to change, we
can someday look forward to a culture
where integrity and honesty reign. I
(Lourdes Didith Mendoza-Rivera is the editor
of INTERSECT, the quarterly magazine, of
John J. Carroll Institute on Church and Social
Issues .)
 ARTICLES

Corruption has become so ingrained in

Ehem! Aha!
everyday life.

Corruption is rooted in a fundamental self-

centeredness, an evil that contravenes the
human responsibility to exist “with” others and
“for” others.

Striving to Build a
The effects of corruption extend beyond the
economic losses incurred when money is
stealthily diverted from public coffers to
private pockets.

Corruption has “weakened the moral and

spiritual fiber of a people that sees almost

Graft-Intolerant
everyone as ‘on the take,’ lahat nandadaya.”

Unlike most other anti-corruption campaigns

and programs which are exclusively oriented
toward exposing wrongdoings in government,
the Ehem! approach aims to sensitize people
to their own involvement in dishonest and

Culture
corrupt practices.

Sustained action in combating corruption

can only come from self-aware individuals.

If people in general began to curb their

tendency toward dishonesty, they would
become less tolerant of corruption in society,
including corruption in government.

Indeed the social and cultural tide favoring

tolerance of corruption is very strong and can
in fact lead one to despair. But as the
experience of Ehem! has shown, there is hope
that Filipinos may yet succeed in building a
counter-culture that refuses to accept that
corruption is normal or that it is an intractable
problem.

By Anna Marie A. Karaos, Ph.D

H
ow many Tagalogs know that the
word “bukol” can mean something
other than a bump on one’s head or
some other part of the body? We are told
that in media circles, a reporter is consid-
ered “nabukulan” if he or she fails to
partake of the largesse distributed by a
politician or a news source. A word as
innocuous as “orbit” apparently refers to
the practice by reporters of making the
rounds (analogous to planets revolving
around the sun) of police stations and
other government offices for the purpose
of soliciting money.
These are examples of how ordinary
Filipinos conceal their practices of cheat-
ing and by doing so make them a normal
part of everyday life. The terms sound
inoffensive yet their frequent usage sug-
gests that the acts they portray have some-
how become accepted practices. Journal-
ists have their own vocabulary to repre-
sent their dishonest deeds and so does
every other institution and subculture in
Filipino society.

Volume 41 • Number 5 9
ARTICLES
Corruption has become so ingrained
in everyday life that the Philippine Church
sees it as gravely damaging to our charac-
ter as a Christian nation. In the Philippine
Bishops’ Pastoral Exhortation for the Year
of Social Concerns, corruption is singled
out as a major challenge to the Church’s
task of building character and building
community. The document points out that
corruption is “rooted in a fundamental
self-centeredness”, an evil that contra-
venes the human responsibility to exist
“with” others and “for” others. In other
words, it distorts the essential character of
the human person which, in the Catholic
faith, is meant to be “other-centered”. The
Pastoral Exhortation declares that “trans-
forming persons from this self-
centeredness to the life of virtue and social
responsibility remains our primary task
and contribution to nation-building.”
The costs of corruption
What is the extent of the consequences
of corruption on Philippine society? The
effects of corruption definitely extend be-
yond the economic losses incurred when
money is stealthily diverted from public
coffers to private pockets. But confining
ourselves to just the economic costs which
are easier to quantify, the numbers can be
quite staggering. Speaking of corruption in
the public sector alone, one estimate places
its cost at three to ten percent of the Gross
National Product and 20 percent of the
national budget. A World Bank report in
2000 estimated that the government was
losing $2 billion a year in the last twenty
years due to corruption. In 1999, the Om-
budsman claimed that the government was
losing as much as PhP100 million daily since
the agency began investigating graft cases
in 1988. The Commission on Audit, in 1998,
reported a slightly lower cost of corruption
at two billion pesos a year (Philippine Prov-
ince of the Society of Jesus, 2005).
Translating these numbers into fore-
gone public goods and services, studies
have shown that up to 65 percent of text-
book funds is actually reserved for bribes
(Philippine Province of the Society of Jesus,
2005). Commissions on public works re-
portedly run up to an average of 30 percent
of the project cost. It is claimed that at least
12-20 percent of pork barrel funds allotted
for building artesian wells, bridges and
roads is pocketed by legislators (Philippine
Province of the Society of Jesus, 2005),
while in the purchase of medicines, books
and instructional materials, legislators get
to keep for themselves as much as 45 per-
cent of allotted funds (Parreno, 1998).
10 IMPACT • May 2007
CBCP Pastoral Letter “Let Integrity
Flow”
Time and again, the Catholic Church
has called attention to the ill effects of
corruption, enjoining its members to do
something about the problem. In 1989, the
bishops wrote a pastoral letter entitled
“Thou Shalt Not Steal,” already express-
ing their grave concern over the harm the
problem has brought to the country, espe-
cially to the poor. In 1997, the bishops
issued the “Pastoral Exhortation on Philip-
pine Politics,” strongly condemning graft
and corruption as a sin against God. In this
document, the bishops proposed very
concrete steps to combat corruption: the
formation of people’s councils to promote
public awareness, monitoring the use of
public funds and initiating charges against
guilty officials.
In its latest pastoral letter on graft and
corruption, “Let Integrity Flow” issued in
2003, the bishops take a step backward
and start off with a call to self-examination
as the foundation for action. Thus the
pastoral letter begins with an admission
that sinfulness, and specifically corrup-
tion, has been a part of the history of the
Church itself. “Today we once more point
an accusing finger at ourselves,” the letter
declares. Then admitting the wrong the
Church has inflicted on the rest of society,
it goes on to say that “we all suffer the pain ceptions of and attitudes toward corrup-
when one part of the Body of Christ, that tion and how they are affected by it. Thus
is the Church, does wrong.” a series of focus group discussions was
Emphasizing the cultural dimension conducted among different sectors of so-
of the problem, the bishops note that “Our ciety to bring to light these attitudes and
high tolerance of evil is still the greatest perceptions. The results were written up in
problem. We as a people are also respon- a book entitled “A Cross-sectoral Study of
sible.” They lament that corruption has Corruption in the Philippines” published
“weakened the moral and spiritual fiber of in 2002.
The study meant to do more than
a people that sees almost everyone as ‘on
simply help people understand common
the take,’ lahat nandadaya.” Not exempt-
perceptions of corruption. More impor-
ing themselves, they openly admit that tant, it was intended to inform the design
“even some in the Church have been known
of an awareness-raising tool to help people
to accept donations from persons known formulate their own action agenda for re-
to be corrupt.” ducing corruption.
Thus a second book was soon pro-
Fighting corruption through duced in 2003, the “Ehem! A Manual for
Ehem! Deepening Involvement in Combating
This stance embodied in the pastoral Corruption” which has since been printed
letter “Let Integrity Flow” is the basic in two editions and has been read and
approach adopted by a program launched used by at least 18,000 participants in
by the Jesuits’ Committee on the Evange- over 200 seminars conducted nationwide.
lization of Culture, known as Ehem!. The These seminars were held in the cities and
Committee wanted to make the fight against regions where the Ehem! networks are
corruption accessible to ordinary people strongest, namely Regions II, III, IV, NCR,
by helping them become more conscious V, VII, IX, X, XI and XII. Attending them
of the practices and effects of corruption were mostly people from government
in everyday life. In order to do this, it was agencies, religious congregations and
important to first understand people’s per- schools.
 Ehem! Aha! Striving to Build a Graft-Intolerant Culture
The Ehem! Approach
What is distinctive about the Ehem!
approach to fighting corruption? As the
name implies, the campaign is essentially
an invitation to self-examination. Unlike
most other anti-corruption campaigns and
programs which are exclusively oriented
toward exposing wrongdoings in govern-
ment, the Ehem! approach aims to sensi-
tize people to their own involvement in
dishonest and corrupt practices. It is pre-
mised on the behavioral principle that
sustained action in combating corruption
can only come from self-aware individu-
als. If people in general began to curb their
tendency toward dishonesty, they would
become less tolerant of corruption in soci-
ety, including corruption in government.
Moreover, the long-term goal of Ehem!’s
intervention is not just to reduce corrup-
tion in government, even though this is an
important objective of the program, but
also to promote a culture of integrity.
Collaborators in government
The success of the Ehem! Campaign
is perhaps best seen in the fact that the
Ehem! sensitivity seminars have been
adopted by a number of government agen-
cies as part of their training and education
programs. Aside from the anti-graft bod-
ies such as the Ombudsman and the Presi-
dential Anti-Graft Commission which
would be logical partners for a program
such as this, a number of agencies per-
ceived by the public as extremely corrupt
have been among its most committed adopt-
ers. Among them are the Land Transporta-
tion Office, Department of Public Works
and Highways, Bureau of Internal Rev-
enue and the Department of Education.
Through a partnership with the Ombuds-
man that aims to institutionalize the cul-
tural sensitivity approach in the educa-
tional, investigative and prosecutorial
functions of the agency, Ehem! seminars
are being organized in the different gov-
ernment agencies by a Technical Working
Group created by the Ombudsman.
Other agencies that have used the
Ehem! manuals and requested for Ehem!
seminars are the Department of Health,
Department of Social Welfare and Devel-
opment, Department of Agrarian Reform,
Department of Finance, Department of
Energy, Department of Labor and Employ-
ment, Department of Agriculture, Depart-
ment of Interior and Local Government,
the Office of the President in Mindanao
and the Mindanao Economic Develop-
ment Council.
Recently the Civil Service Commis-
sion accredited the Ehem!sensitivity semi-
nars as a personnel development program
for government officials and employees.
This means that civil servants can now use
their attendance in the Ehem! seminars to
enhance their credentials for promotions
and salary increases. This development is
expected to further increase the number of
regular Ehem! users among the
government’s frontline agencies.
Beyond Ehem!—Aha!,
whistleblowing and more
While creating awareness and sensi-
tivity to dishonest and corrupt practices is
seen as the foundation for building an
anti-corruption movement, the campaign
does not stop here. In 2004, the Ehem!
Project Team headed by Fr. Albert Alejo,
S.J. and Dr. Ronnie Amorado, launched
the Walang Hihingi campaign in time for
the 2004 elections. Consistent with the
Ehem! approach, the campaign directed its
appeal not so much to the politicians en-
gaged in vote-buying and distributing
funds for projects in order to win votes, as
to the electorate, and specifically to those
in the habit of soliciting funds from candi-
dates for all sorts of projects like basket-
ball courts, team uniforms, trophies, fies-
tas and even to church people asking for
donations for their charities.
People who want to stand up against
corruption need tremendous support and
protection to enable them to act according
to their conscience. In 2005, a study was
initiated among whistleblowers towards
the preparation of a book, the “Aha! A
Citizen’s Primer on Whistleblowing.” The
project is again a joint effort between the
Ehem! Project Team and the Technical
Working Group of the Office of the Om-
budsman. The primer provides useful tips
and advice to whistleblowers and is used
in the orientation seminars and literacy
courses being given to prospective
whistleblowers.
How do people cross the line from
awareness and intolerance to actually
doing something about the evils of cor-
ruption? Also in 2005, the Ehem! team
embarked on a research project on the
“Spirituality of Integrity” which will feed
into another publication, a resource book
on integrity and good practices in combat-
ing corruption, to be titled “ Ehemplo!.”
The book will feature true-to-life cases of
people who have successfully resisted
corruption and expound on the inner re-
sources that have sustained these coura-
geous people in their crusades. As an
accompaniment to the book, a 3-minute
Ehemplo! MTV has also been produced to
try to communicate the value of integrity
to a more popular audience, and especially
to young people.
A Graft-Intolerant Culture
It is said that it only takes good men
and women to do nothing for evil to tri-
umph.
In their 2003 pastoral exhortation, the
bishops lamented the fact that corruption
“has weakened the resolve of many to
work for change as they are gradually
being conditioned to accept and tolerate
systematic and institutional corruption as
being part of the nature of things, and no
longer as a matter of individual wrongdo-
ing by those in power.” Indeed the social
and cultural tide favoring tolerance of
corruption is very strong and can in fact
lead one to despair. But as the experience
of Ehem! has shown, there is hope that
Filipinos may yet succeed in building a
counter-culture that refuses to accept that
corruption is normal or that it is an intrac-
table problem. I
(Anna Marie A. Karaos, Ph.D., is the Executive
Director of the John J. Carroll Institute on Church and
Social Issues of the Ateneo de Manila University.)
Volume 41 • Number 5 11
STATEMENTS
A
s the May 2007 Elections
draw near we are caught
by the feverish excite-
ment that customarily accompa-
nies elections in our country. Let
us not be drowned by this pass-
ing sensation and shove aside
the decisive impact of the elec-
tions that could bring foresee-
able dismal consequences to our
future as a democratic nation. I
am writing you this letter to put
back to our consciousness the
crucial necessity of preparing
ourselves for another critical
moment of our lives as Filipino
Catholics.
First and foremost, I remind
you that we live in a democracy.
The late Pope John Paul II em-
phasized this in his encyclical:
“The Church values the demo-
cratic system.”(cf. Centesimus
Annus, 46). In a democracy we,
the people, rule. In a democracy
the people rule through their
vote. This God-given power is a
“pearl of great price” (cf. Mt.
13.46) which must not be “thrown
to the pigs.” (cf. Mt. 7.6) Through
this God-given power we, the
people, become active builders
of our own future. And as Chris-
tian believers we fulfill what we
all pray when we say in the
Lord’s Prayer, “Thy Kingdom
come!” (cf. Mt. 6.10; Lk. 11.2) I
ask you then to exercise this
God-given power as faithful
Catholics who must be a leaven
in the world and transform our
culture in Jesus Christ, the Risen
Lord.
Secondly, as we look for-
ward to the celebration of the 40th
anniversary of our diocese, a
unique occasion that challenges
the maturity of our Christian
faith, God calls us not just to
“renew” our religious faith, but
to make it the guiding force in
our lives, both public and pri-
vate.The Second Vatican Coun-
cil in the document “Gaudium et
Spes” advises us of the eminent
significance of the practice of
the Christian faith: “One of the
graver errors of our time is the
dichotomy between the faith we
profess and the practice of [our]
daily lives… Let there be no such
pernicious opposition between
12 IMPACT • May 2007
professional and social activity
on the one hand and religious
life on the other. The Christian
who shirks his temporal duties
shirks his duties toward his neigh-
bor [and] neglects God himself
… (Vatican II,Gaudium et Spes,
n. 43)
Thirdly, let us remind our-
selves of our vocation as bap-
tized Christians. Vatican II tells
us that we each share “the obli-
gation of spreading the faith,
and that “the whole Church is
missionary and the work of evan-
gelization [is] the fundamental
task of the people of God.”
John Paul II stresses in his
book, Crossing the Threshold of
Hope, that all Christians are in-
volved in “a struggle for the soul
of the contemporary world.”
In every compartment of our
lives—from our families, to our
jobs, and even to the solitude of
the voting booth—God asks us
to be His witnesses, His apostles.
St. Paul’s words, “Woe to me if I
do not preach the Gospel,” ap-
ply to us all every single day in
our choices. We either preach
Jesus Christ in our words and
actions, or we lose him. It has
always social consequences—
and that means cultural and po-
litical consequences. Democ-
racy thrives on those conse-
quences.
Having said all that, I direct
your serious concern to the May
Elections. Having given a brief
recall of the gloomy situation
experienced by our nation be-
cause of past “controversial elec-
toral exercise that further aggra-
vates social distrust and hope-
lessness,” the Catholic bishops
of our country enjoin us to “come
together once more and orga-
nize ourselves more effectively…
to make this year’s elections cred-
ible—and as free of violence as
possible.” (cf. CBCP Letter to
Dioceses and Parishes, 28 Janu-
ary 2007)
1. Hence, as your shepherd
and your bishop I urge you
as faithful citizens and as
faithful Catholics:
2. To form your conscience
according to the social
teachings of the Church
A Pastoral Letter to
Priests, Religious
and the Faithful on
the Forthcoming
Elections
“The Lord is risen!” May the joy and peace
of Easter grant us the courage to witness to our
faith in the resurrection of the Lord Jesus.
concerning the active par-
ticipation of all Catholics in
social affairs. Your active
involvement demands a criti-
cal moral judgment.
3. To know and understand
the issues and critically
evaluate the platform and
programs of candidates and
parties seeking political of-
fice. (cf. PPCRV, Ten Com-
mandments of Responsible
Voting, n. 4) The platform
and programs must promote
peace, justice and develop-
ment.
4. In effect, when you enter the
voting booth, you are not
there simply to pull a lever
for a favorite or a popular
candidate or in favor of your
own personal and possibly
selfish self-interest. You are
there with the power to ef-
fect change and shape the
future of our society.
5. To critically choose candi-
dates who possess the fol-
lowing qualities necessary
for public office: (cf. PPCRV,
Ten Commandments of Re-
sponsible Voting, nn. 6-10)
a Competency: The candidate
must be competent to hold
public office and be judged
by his/her personal behav-
ior and his/her commitment
to serve the people.
b. Personal Integrity: The can-
didate must have moral in-
tegrity; be honest and ad-
here to his moral principles.
He or she must also have
strong family values. The
candidate must be true to
his words and be serving
God through his deeds.
c. Commitment to the common
good: The candidate must
be able to champion the
causes of all citizens not just
that of their family members
or close relatives and friends.
Finally, let us be aware that
the past elections in our country
had always been marred by co-
ercion, unfairness and dishon-
esty. The Catholic bishops af-
firmed that “many of our current
political problems which have
hindered fuller economic devel-
opment and social injustice can
be traced to unresolved ques-
tions concerning the conduct of
past elections.” (cf. CBCP Letter
to Dioceses and Parishes, 28
January 2007). I enjoin all of you,
then, as concerned citizens and
faithful believers, to “work to
help clean the dirt from our easily
corrupted electoral process.” (cf.
CBCP Letter to Dioceses and
Parishes, 28 January 2007)
• Therefore, as your pastor
and your bishop I strongly ad-
monish:
• All government officials:
Many of you are Christians. In
fact, majority of you are Catholic
Christians. I admonish you not
to resort to ways and means that
will impair a free, fair and honest
election. I appeal to your good
Christian hearts and minds to

take heroic courage to definitely
curb all abuses and all forms of
violence, intimidation and cor-
ruption.
• All political candidates and
all those affiliated with them:
Politics is not an exercise of popu-
larity or of showing off one’s
wealth and power but it is an
exercise of one’s commitment to
look after the common good. I
admonish you not to employ
whatever form of violent and
corrupt means to achieve suc-
cess in the political race.
• Some sectors of society
who take advantage of the elec-
tion commotion: In the past your
unorthodox means of “partici-
pating” in the elections in the
name of helping the people had
sown fear and anger among the
population. I admonish you to
cease taking advantage of some
ambitious politicians and of the
vulnerability of the people. If
you honestly have the good of
the country in mind, sowing ter-
ror, violence and anger are abso-
lutely way out of your vision to
make your idealisms come to re-
ality.
• All who work in the service
of the Catholic Church: In past
experiences I had known of
Church workers who decided to
give up their Christian principles
and get mired up in “dirty” poli-
tics. I admonish you not to aban-
don God in favor of “mammon”.
Indeed, this is the appropriate
occasion for you to witness to
the Gospel values of justice,
peace and love which you preach
as servants of the Church.
To all Basic Ecclesial Com-
munities (BEC’s) throughout the
diocese, I make this special ap-
peal:
The bishops of our country
underscore your critically sig-
nificant role in this year’s elec-
tions not because you form the
majority of the electoral popu-
lace but because you possess
an extraordinary strength that
comes from your solidarity and
unity, that strength that comes
only from the Lord who is always
present “whenever two or three
are gathered in His name.” The
Lord assures us, “Do not fear! It
is I!” (Jn 6.20)
Thus, I appeal to you to
stand up and show yourselves
as self-governing, self-sustain-
ing, self-nourishing communi-
ties who cannot be manipulated
and overcome by gold, guns and
glamour. Let your actions show
that you are governed, sustained
and nourished by the Gospel
values of love and forgiveness,
of humility and obedience, and
of justice and peace.
For us all, our responsibility
to our faith and to our nation
requires that we consider seri-
ously the action we are going to
make, and that we do what is
right. For only action that is right
and true will in the end rescue our
country. This is a critical mo-
ment—and to do nothing would
be a great tragedy. Therefore, let
us implore the Holy Spirit to en-
lighten us and to enlighten our
country.
As a sign of our depen-
dence on God, I ask each vicari-
ate or, if circumstances allow,
each parish to hold a pre-elec-
tion Holy Hour before Christ,
the Bread of Life. I urge each
family to recite a daily Rosary
prior to the elections; we be-
seech Mary, Immaculately con-
ceived, the patroness of our coun-
try, to intercede for us; and we
ask the intercession of St. Jo-
seph, the protector of the Church
and patron of our diocese, to
protect us. Through intense
prayers and acts of self-giving, I
ask all Catholics to witness to all
our brothers and sisters about
the profound moral significance
of the decisions being made that
day.
May the Risen Lord grant
us the strength to live up to our
convictions as witnesses of his
resurrection striving towards the
building up of “a new heaven
and a new earth.”
Given this 23rd day of April
2007, the feast of St. George the
Martyr, at the Bishop’s Resi-
dence, Ampayon, Butuan City.
In Mary’s fiat,
+Juan de Dios M. Pueblos, DD
Bishop of Butuan
Reflection for Labor Day
T
oday the nation hon-
ors, appreciates and
salutes the millions in
the labor force all over the
country. We might even
consider these workers as
also genuine servants of the
state. They are the hands
and feet, even to some ex-
tent the mind and the soul,
of production. On them too
rest the rise and fall of
economy. The condition of
labor is probably a key to
the question of social
progress.
We can gauge the
country’s poverty level by
looking at the condition of
the majority of our labor
force. In some real sense, the
primary basis for the value of
work is the worker himself.
As the classic saying goes:
“Work is for man, not man
for work.” Every human be-
ing achieves fulfillment by
working for himself and his
family and then for the great
society whose life he partici-
pates in.
This means everyone
must be able to derive from
his work the means of sup-
porting himself and his fam-
ily, and of serving the human
community. It is necessary
that solidarity among work-
ers themselves and with
workers on the part of busi-
ness establishments be pro-
moted for the protection of
mutual rights.
While approaching and
advocating the ideal situa-
tion of solidarity and com-
munion between labor and
businessmen, still the “pri-
ority of labor over capital”
should be accepted as a fun-
damental and classic prin-
ciple. This is based on the
principle of the “primacy of
man over things”—such as,
science and technology, the
instruments of work, money,
Volume 41 • Number 5
STATEMENTS
profit, which are thought of
as capital.
Numbers or statistics
might help our reflection on
Labor Day. While govern-
ment claims that 5 million jobs
have been generated from
2001 to the present (Philip-
pine Star, April 30, 2007), one
study has it that in January
2006 the unemployed indi-
viduals have reached 3.9
million and still increasing,
while the underemployed
were 5.4 million of 31.7 mil-
lion employed. Overseas
work has helped to a great
extent the Philippine
economy by mitigating the
employment problem in the
country. As of 2004 the over-
seas Filipino workers totaled
8 million. It is an accepted
fact, their remittances have
provided an important
source of income for a great
number of Filipino families.
During the present cam-
paign period for the May
election, the condition of la-
bor must be one of the con-
cerns addressed to our fu-
ture leaders of government
in all levels. We may have
many good laws that are “pro
workers”, but how many of
them are still waiting for
implementation? The pov-
erty level of labor could be a
sign (one anyway) indicat-
ing the genuine level of
economy.
We hope that the future
leaders of our country—from
the bottom up—in solidarity
with the business sector, will
ensure through implementa-
tion of just legislation the
workers’ rights as well as the
just development of the
world of work.
+ANGEL N. LAGDAMEO
Archbishop of Jaro
President, CBCP
May 1, 2007
13
STATEMENTS

A
s we enter the final weeks
before elections, it Pastoral Letter

Conscience,
would be good to re-
mind ourselves of three C’s for
choosing candidates—i.e.,
Conscience, Competence, and
Commitment.
First and foremost, the

Competence,
candidate must be a person of
conscience. He or she is
guided by a sense of morality,
of what is morally right or
wrong. He is maka-Diyos and

Commitment
maka-tao. He takes to heart
the commandments: “Thou
shall not kill. Thou shall not
steal. Thou shall not bear false
witness.” Since he is running
for public office, he must be
transparent in his actions and
accountable for all his trans-
actions involving public funds.
In short, he upholds the val-
ues of Truth, Justice, and
Love.
Secondly, the candidate
must be a person of compe-
tence. He has a record of pub-
lic service that we can verify.
His academic qualifications
are sound. His previous work
experience gives us assurance
that he will be a good steward
of human, natural and finan-
cial resources. Merely belong-
ing to a “political dynasty” is
no assurance of competence;
it may even be seen as a nega-
tive mark. NAMFREL and NASSA in help- office must be checked by en- life has to be protected and
Thirdly, the candidate is a ing in voters’ education, poll gaged citizens’ groups that promoted. The Church has
person of commitment—i.e., he watching, and the quick count- demand social auditing of the been in the forefront of pro-life
is sincere and committed to ing of votes. use of public funds, especially issues – particularly against
serve the common good and 2) There is a need forgenu- for infrastructure projects. The the social ills of abortion and
the participation of the gov- ine democratization and po- use of “pork barrel” funds must artificial contraception. The
erned through people empow- litical reforms. The sordid prac- also be fully accounted for. archdiocese promotes respon-
erment. He is committed to tices of vote-buying and vote- Drug-pushing and rampant sible parenthood and a com-
causes beyond his own self- selling and mindless marshal- gambling must be checked. prehensive natural family plan-
interest and family aggrandize- ling of “command votes” are These social vices eventually ning program which we invite
ment. symptoms of a deeper malaise. give rise to narcopolitics and government agencies and lo-
Some of these causes have This must be counteracted by the dominance of “jueteng cal governments to support.
been articulated by the Church a political culture of “principles, lords.” 6) The support of private
in recent statements of the party platforms and genuine 4) In terms of social re- schools in the public service
Catholic Bishops’ Conference people’s participation.” The form, the CBCP statements in has been a recurrent concern
of the Philippines. recent stand of the local Church January 2007 express the bish- for the local Church. Moreover,
1) There is a need for elec- against the railroading of char- ops’ concerns in upholding the the rights of parents and stu-
toral reforms. The credibility ter change through a so-called dignity of the rural and urban dents for optional religious
of some COMELEC officials Peoples’ Initiative or a Con- poor. In particular, we call on instruction in public schools
has been eroded, particularly stituent Assembly highlights government to complete the as upheld by the Constitution
in the conduct of last elections. the need for continuing vigi- implementation of agrarian re- should be fully honored. There
In this regard, I highly endorse lance and genuine democratic form and provide housing op- is need to strengthen the moral
to our parishioners the call for processes. portunities for the urban poor. fiber of our citizenry through
volunteers to join PPCRV, 3) Corruption in public 5) The integrity of family religious instruction according

14 IMPACT • May 2007


to the students’ own faith tra-
dition.
7) Conserving the envi-
ronment has been a major con-
cern of many dioceses, includ-
ing our own. The CBCP has
issued statements against irre-
sponsible mining and logging
– wanton practices that appar-
ently are still taking place at a
small or fairly large scale in the
upstream areas of Cagayan de
Oro and Iponan rivers. We have
also issued a call against the
introduction of genetically-
modified organisms (GMOs) in
our food chain. This has been
done surreptitiously without
proper labeling that should
protect the consumers’ rights.
8) Finally, the rule of law
and promoting the human secu-
rity of households and local
communities must prevail. We
condemn the extra-judicial kill-
ings of individuals. Two of
these have taken place over the
past months in Misamis Orien-
tal. The public safety of peasant
and labor leaders as well as of
journalists exercising their pro-
fession must be upheld. The
basic freedoms of expression
and association are hallmarks
of a genuine democracy.
Conscience, Competence,
Commitment—three qualities
we look for in our public offi-
cials. But these are the same
attributes we should look for in
ourselves as voters. It is time to
take democracy in our own
hands and make it work for our
communities and future gen-
erations.
We commend all those who
volunteer their time, talents and
treasure to ensure the viability
of our democratic institutions.
These include volunteers who
take a neutral stance to watch
the polls. On the other hand,
we also encourage the Catho-
lic laity together with other citi-
zens’ groups who wish to take
a trans-partisan stand in the
choice of worthy candidates.
Trans-partisanship in this
sense does not only mean
choosing and openly endors-
ing candidates across political
parties. More profoundly, it
means transcending the nar-
row bounds of party politics to
choose candidates who uphold
the Gospel values for building
what the Social Teachings of
the Church envision as a “civi-
lization of love.”
May your involvement in
the political life of our country
personify your collective con-
science, competence and com-
mitment to rebuild our dam-
aged institutions and create a
brighter future for your chil-
dren and coming generations.
The candidate who buys your
vote is a candidate without the
three C’s. He is the last one you
should vote for. Your vote is
sacred. Your vote counts.
Antonio J. Ledesma, S.J.
Archbishop of Cagayan de Oro
1 May 2007
Pastoral Letter on the
Upcoming 2007 Elections
“Choose wise, intelligent and experienced men
from each of your tribes”(Deut. 1:13)
BELOVED people of God:
Peace be with you!
Once again we are to face
another election this year.
And once again our maturity
and ability to choose leaders
who will become public ser-
vants in our government will
be put to the test. Thanks to
the democratic process in our
choice of candidates whom
we want to elect. This pro-
cess also demands of us the
responsibility to take actions
to ensure peaceful, true,
clean, and just elections.
As a people of God it is
our responsibility to safe-
guard our right to choose and
to protect the sanctity of bal-
lots. Let us always uphold
activities that will help us
achieve peaceful and true
elections. Important activities
are “Voters’ Education” be-
fore elections and vigilance
during and after the elections,
and securing the “election
returns and results”.
The CBCP Pastoral Let-
ter to the dioceses and to the
parishes has this request
“…every parish organization
and institution—and the
BECs most especially—be
mobilized to the utmost to do
what each can do towards
that end…that they must form
linkages with one another and
with other like-minded civic
and religious associations
that are working to help clean
the dirt from our easily cor-
rupted electoral process.”
THERE SHOULD BE NO
VOTEBUYING,CHEATING,
COERCION, FIGHTING,
STEALING, DISHON-
ESTY… DO NOT BE DE-
CEIVED BY PROMISES
THAT HAVE NO FULFILL-
MENT.LETUSMAKEOUR
Volume 41 • Number 5
STATEMENTS
ELECTIONS PEACEFUL,
TRUE, CLEAN AND JUST.
As a guideline here are
the ten (10) commandments
for responsible voting: 1) You
shall vote according to the
dictate of your conscience;
2) You shall respect the deci-
sion of others in choosing
their candidates; 3) You shall
seek to know the moral integ-
rity, capabilities and other
personal qualities of the can-
didates you will vote for; 4)
You shall strive to under-
stand the issues, platform and
program of candidates and
parties seeking your vote; 5)
You shall not sell your vote;
6) You shall not vote for can-
didates using guns, goons
and gold; 7) You shall not
vote for candidates with
records of graft and corrup-
tion, and Human Rights Vio-
lation; 8) You shall not vote
for candidates just because
of “utang na loob”, personal
appearance, popularity, or
pakikisama; 9) You shall not
vote for candidates living an
immoral life; 10) You shall put
the welfare of the country
above all else in choosing the
candidate you will vote for.
It is our hope that the
Virgin Mary, the Queen of
Peace, will always inspire us
to do the will of Her Son Jesus.
We hope that St. Michael the
Archangel will protect us from
every evil.
May the God of love,
peace, and justice unite all of
us in our work for a peaceful
and clean election!
In Christ,
+Elenito D. Galido, D.D.
Bishop of Iligan
February 23, 2007
15
The Hidden Cost of Graft and Corruption
B
y way of a better understanding of
our focal subject concern, it would
be good to know or review the dif-
ference and similarity between “graft” and
“corruption”.
For practical purposes, they are inter-
changeable terms and pursuant realities—
for good reasons: one, their mere mention
immediately brings to mind the misuse or
abuse of public office. Two, they both
instantly bring to mind gross dishonesty
and flagrant fraud in governance. Three,
their pairing infallibly says the issue of
deceitful private gains of public officials
eventually effective of losses of the public
sector.
In the technical sphere of law and
pursuant jurisprudence, however, there is
a given and accepted difference between
the nature of “graft” and that of “corrup-
tion”:
a. Graft is specifically applicable to
public officials who betray their oath and
take advantage of their office by pocket-
ing public funds, giving favors, readily
doing or actually sitting on their functions
due to agreed upon considerations. In
graft, the key element is someone holding
a public office and betraying a public
trust—plus stealing public funds, deny-
ing or undermining public service.
b. Corruption concretely refers to
public officials who conspire with private
citizens, organizations or institutions un-
der the triad of the briber (private persons
or entities), the bribe (money, gifts, fa-
vors), and the bribed (public official). In
corruption, the essential conspiring fig-
ures are at least one public official and one
private person, entity of corporation.
c. The screaming and dismaying head-
line “RP MOST CORRUPT IN ASIA” ac-
cording to the Political and Economic Risk
Consultancy (PERC) (cf. Philippine Daily
Inquirer, March 14, 2007) means exactly
the following: first, the distinct and perva-
sive actuality of the “Triad of Dishonesty”
between government officials and private
individuals and enterprises. Second, the
“triad” is particularly operative in the
sphere of Philippine politics and corporate
business. Third, the “triad” has ascended
to a superlative degree to the extent that it
gathered the first ranking in the whole
continent of Asia.
A. Anti-Corruption Agencies in
the Philippine Government
It is both intriguing and disheartening
to know and remember that the Philippine
Government has an impressive number of
no less than constitutional bodies plus
16 IMPACT • May 2007
presidential entities categorically and
concretely established to specifically
counter graft and corruption in its own
fold. Established in 1986 to 2001 by differ-
ent Presidential Executive Orders, they
are either in fact obviously involved them-
selves in such detestable practices they
are mandated to counter or are strongly
suspect of being manned by no less than
big grafters and corrupt officials, or basi-
cally dysfunctional and wherefore perni-
cious even to the general public.
All the officials of these distin-
guished and impressive government en-
tities are not only fully paid by the direct
and indirect taxes of all the citizens of the
Philippines from their birth to death. A
good number of them are even enjoying
enviable perks and privileges suppos-
edly for doing their jobs. For these rea-
sons alone, it becomes understandable
that they are practically glued to their
official chairs only for their personal in-
terests but also on account of their pa-
trons in government by reason of trans-
actional politics.
That is why notwithstanding the
repeated and loud praise-chanting about
these government agencies by the in-
cumbent national leadership plus the
high profile they have in the present
administration, it is both to their fame and
shame that for 2007, the Philippines gained
the aforesaid qualifying distinction of
the odious title of “Most Corrupt” in
Asia. For recall and reference purposes,
the following are some of the more known
and often mentioned supposedly anti-
corruption entities by the 1986 Constitu-
tion and the last six continuously consti-
tuted by Executive Orders from 1986 to
2001:
1. Commission on Elections; 2. Of-
fice of the Ombudsman; 3.
Sandiganbayan; 4. Commission on Au-
dit; 5. Bangko Sentral Ng Pilipinas; 6.
Civil Service Commission; 7. Presidential
Commission on Good Government; 8.
Inter-Agency Anti-Graft Coordinating
Council; 9. Presidential Committee on
Effective Governance; 10. Presidential
Anti-Graft Commission; 11. Governance
Advisory Council; 12. Anti-Money Laun-
dering Council.
The irony of it all rests on the fact
that just last year 2006, the incumbent
Head of Government even proudly an-
nounced that it has earmarked no less
than an additional amount of two billion
pesos to combat graft and corruption in
government! This brings to mind the
height of futility and the summit of hy-
© Dennis Dayao / CBCP Media Office
 C O V E R
S T O R Y

The Hidden Cost

of Graft and
Corruption
By Oscar V. Cruz

© Denz Dayao / IMPACT

Volume 41 • Number 5 17
C O V E R
S T O R Y
pocrisy as may be perceived in the ridicu-
lous images of feeding the sharks, trusting
thieves, converting evil! This is why one
year later as above said, 2007 is a title year
for the Philippines openly declared for the
whole world to know as tops in corruption
in the Asian Continent!
B. Graft and corruption in
government
By way of a more concrete perspec-
tive and particular understanding of graft
and corruption in government, it will be
useful to consider though briefly the three
following signal realities. In effect, they
come by way of conclusions of many stud-
ies, prolonged researches and proper in-
quiries by certain non-government groups
and organizations:
1. “Dirty Money”
For purposes of both technicality and
practicality, the so-called “dirty money”
comes in three categories. Though they
have their respective terminologies, in
substance, however, their common de-
nominator is greed productive precisely of
flagrant graft and blatant corruption in this
pitiful country.
a. Extortion. This is an agreed amount of
money demanded by a person holding
public office and wherefore exercising
public authority so that the payee
could evade penalty, big damage or
grave inconvenience. Needless to say,
this is the vilest form of graft and
corruption. In the vernacular this is
called “patong”.
b. Grease. This is standard, agreed upon
or acceptable payment usually given
to high or low public officials for the
purpose of making these precisely do
their functions better and/or faster, or
for facilitating the instance or insis-
tence of payees. This money chang-
ing hands usually comes as a form of
corruption. In the vernacular this is
called “padulas”.
c. Bribe. This comes in form of relatively
big amount of money paid to the public
officials with decision-making power
usually to favor the payee. This par-
ticular form of corruption ordinarily
happens in the Judicial System, the
immediate and disastrous result of
which is that justice has become illu-
sive to the poor and common tao.
2. Graft-prone government agencies
Among others, the twelve govern-
ment agencies that are prone to graft prac-
tices pursuant to records and consequent
18 IMPACT • May 2007
cases filed against some of their officials
last year alone, are the following—arranged
in alphabetical order:
1 Bureau of Customs (BOC); 2. Bureau
of Internal Revenue (BIR); Commission on
Elections (COMELEC); 3. Department of
Education (DepEd); 4. Department of Inte-
rior & Local Government (DILG); 5. De-
partment of National Defense (DND); 6.
Department of Natural Resources (DENR);
7. Department of Public Works & High-
ways (DPWH); 8. Department of Trans-
portation and Communication (DOTC); 9.
National Housing Authority (NHA); 10.
National Irrigation Agency (NIA); 11. Se-
curities & Exchange Commission (SEC).
It might be worth noting that the most
known and commonly considered most
graft ridden and corrupt government agen-
cies are the following—arranged in their
order of demerit: First, Bureau of Internal
Review. Second, Bureau of Customs.
Third, Department of Public Works & High-
ways. It is for this reason that the key
public offices in these government enti-
ties are the most sought after and accord-
ingly dispensed by the Administration to
those it owes to appease and/or those
numbered among its favorites for political
and/or personal reasons. It is not alto-
gether unfounded for many people to be-
lieve that the high public officials ap-
pointed to these three distinct agencies
are well screened in their loyalty to the
appointing power.
3. Graft and Corruption Particulars
Considering “graft and corruption”
as but one composite reality, viz., “G/C”,
whereby any public official uses his or her
public office for promoting private inter-
ests and/or acquiring personal gains, there
are more than a thousand and one particu-
lars that can be pointed out in conjunction b. G/C has become a matter of course in
with this subject matter. For purposes of the workings of the Executive Depart-
brevity however, there are certain ment, in the manipulation of the major-
conclusory items that are worth mention- ity and the independent members of
ing for a better understanding and appre- the Legislative Department especially
ciation of the reach and impact of these the Lower House of Congress, and in
practices of greed, avarice or covetous- the inducements of the key figures in
ness obtaining in government: the Judicial Department in promoting
a. G/C has taken deep and extensive the big interests and protecting the
rootage in the whole Philippine politi- distinct concerns of the present Ad-
cal system from the national to the ministration.
local levels, and vice versa. It comes c. G/C is such practiced in Government
primarily in terms of the promotion of Owned and Controlled Corporations
partisan interests, the reality of trans- (GOCC) with Philippine Amusement
actional politics, the tenets of political and Gambling Corporation (PAGCOR)
deserving special mention, in building
patronage and consequent appoint-
ments to high positions in govern- government projects and making pro-
ment agencies, departments and of- curements, in the preferential treat-
fices. ment of public officials who contribute

most to partisan gains thus enjoying
practical immunity from judicial penal-
ties even for gross offenses.
d G/C stands out when it comes to gov-
ernment regulatory activities—such
as in securing national and local gov-
ernment permits and licenses, in get-
ting public contracts, in making pay-
ments for direct taxes.
e. G/C is a given in dealing with the
government officials concerned in
conjunction with the following corpo-
rate businesses especially in big and
medium scales: manufacturing, trade,
finance, transportation, communica-
tion.
f. G/C has already long since become the
special concern of certain Non-Gov-
ernment Organizations, among which
The Hidden Cost of Graft and Corruption
© Denz Dayao / CBCPMedia
are the following more known ones:
Procurement Watch, Inc., Bantay
Katarungan. Transparency and Ac-
countability Network, Philippine Cen-
ter for Investigative Journalism
(PCIJ)—where a good amount of the
information and data in this page have
been taken and crosschecked with
other sources.
g. G/C has shown its most signal and
scandalous expression in certain
unique phenomenon and singular facts
in the country that merited historical
recording for many generations to
know and remember. Among the well
noted and corrupt acts in the Philip-
pines the following surely deserve
special mention for their significance
and pursuant implications: 1. Cronyism
(Marcos Rule); 2. Kamag-Anak, Inc.
(Cory Regime); 3. PEA-Amari (Ramos
Regime); 4. Dummy Corporation
(Estrada Presidency); 5. Hello Garci
Tape (Arroyo Reign)
C. “Pork Barrel”
Since its ominous introduction in the
national budget specifically in favor of the
honorable members of the Legislative
Department, the “pork barrel” system—
euphemistically called Countrywide De-
velopment Fund (CDF)—has been the
object of many investigations and conse-
quent denunciations, repeated adverse
findings and pursuant censures. Many
consider it as an efficient vehicle of en-
demic graft and systemic corruption in the
Philippine governance:
1. Even but for purposes of recall, it
would be good to cite how much fats are
eaten up by the Philippine legislators—
under the following interesting observa-
tions: a.) There are legislators who in fact
deliberately refuse to get their allotted
“pork barrel”. This they do as a matter of
principle for which reason they can be
counted with one’s finger; b.) There are
legislators who in effect are denied their
“pork barrel” for not being pro-administra-
tion; c.) There are indications that the
“pork barrel” is even bigger in the 2007
National Budget.
It has been acknowledged that there
is a somehow good side to “pork barrel” in
the sense that it in a way provides for the
needs of the constituents of a legislator
especially so when they are neglected by
the national government.
2. By way of general information,
hereunder are the yearly sum totals—as of
last year’s national budget—credited for
their respective dispositions of legislators
“according to law”: a.) 70 Million Pesos
per Congressman; b) 200 Million Pesos
per Senator; c) Thousands more for cer-
tain items.
“Pork Barrel” also provides some
means of developmental projects particu-
larly in favor of the 5 thand 6th class munici-
palities.
3. And by way of concrete data,
hereunder are the yearly particulars of the
“pork barrel”, i.e., the beneficial items in-
cluded in the whole barrel for application
by the legislators: a.) 10-20 M for Priority
Development Assistance Fund; b.) 15M
as Congressional Initiative Allocation; c.)
30-60M for Public Works fund; d.) 4-5M
for School Building Fund; e.) 05-1M for
Farm-to-Market Road Construction Fund.
There are marked findings that in ad-
Volume 41 • Number 5 19
C O V E R
S T O R Y
dition to the “pork barrel” proper, legisla-
tors get additional takes and perks under
various entitlements—monthly, occasion-
ally, yearly: a) Salary per month: P35,000.00;
b) Credited Expenses per month:
P200,000.00; c) Foreign Travel per day:
$300.00; d) Special occasions: P50,000.00;
e) Election of Speaker: P200,000.00 max; f)
Allowance from Speaker: P100,000.00 max;
g) Christmas gift from Speaker: P200,000.00
max; h) Attendance for selected bills:
P50,000.00 +; i) Christmas gift from
Malacañang: P100,000.00 +; j) Committee
Chairmanship: variable.
D. Costs of Graft and Corruption
Needless to say, graft and corrup-
tion cost people much nationwide in terms
of their eventual big losses individually,
as a sector or as a composite whole—be
these immediately evident or hidden which
is worse as to their deeper and longer
impact. First, they cost them as direct and
indirect tax payers in the sense that a big
amount of their hard earned money goes
to the pockets of many unscrupulous
public officials. Second,
The Philippines has not earned
they further cost them
as citizens deprived of
what is due them such
as their public welfare
or common good they the odious and shameful title of
have the right to expect
and to have. Third, they
finally cost them in their
the “Most Corrupt in Asia”—for
ethical perspective and
pursuant values sys- nothing!
tem that in effect un-
dermine their dignity as
human persons. The costs of graft and
corruption can be thus identified and
categorized:
a. Money Cost. According to the most
conservative estimate of the Commis-
sion on Audit, graft and corruption in
the Philippines cost a minimum of 2 to
3 Billion pesos a year to the people. It
is a given that the COA itself is sadly
not altogether free of graft and corrup-
tion.
b. Social Cost. The supposed beneficia-
ries who constitute the Filipino people
are robbed of what is due them in
social development. This translates to
socio-political instability and citizen’s
discontent brought about by poverty,
hunger and sickness—not to mention
poor education, lack of medical and
welfare services.
c. Ethical Cost. Most costly of all the
ill-effects of flagrant graft and blatant
corruption are the hidden ones of
20 IMPACT • May 2007
ethical nature and/or moral import—
such as the following: 1) Graft and
corruption become a political given.
Acceptance of greed and consequent
deception in money matters become
but a fact of life. The pursuit of fast
and easy money comes as a matter of
course. Honesty and integrity are only
for the simpletons and fools who know
no better. 2) Promotion of the culture
of lying, cheating, and stealing. Ero-
sion of the fundamental values of
honesty and integrity. Deadening of
conscience even among young
people—to the extent of their loss of
the sense of right and wrong, the
distinction between virtue and vice.
3) Indifference to the gross violation
of social justice, apathy to the op-
pression of the common tao, resigna-
tion to the reality of easy life, abuse
and thievery among public officials.
Adoption of the “see nothing, hear
nothing, say nothing” stance as a
rule of life to the extent that each one
is responsible only to oneself.
E. Social Doctrine of the Church
It is a big pity that the Social Doctrine
of the Church somehow still remains her
“best kept secret” in the world in the sense
that it has not been really taught and acted
upon as the Clergy and the Religious did
much regarding cultic matters, viz., devo-
tional, spiritual, supernatural agenda. For
this reason, the Catholic faith in the Phil-
ippines could have become too
verticalistic, with its rightful horizontal
dimension—the Social Doctrine of the
Church—somehow sadly forgotten.
To this date, a good number of politi-
cal and business leaders in the country are
graduates of Catholic schools, colleges
and universities. They presence church
liturgy, have their favorite devotions and
even attend retreats—which are basically
with reference to the “hereafter and be-
yond”. Yet, the Philippines is not exactly
known for honesty and integrity, for the
promotion of social justice, the quest for
peace productive of human develop-
ment—which are basically in conjunction
with the “here and now”, and which are
precisely the primary concern of the Social
Doctrine of the Church.
Among the thousand and one key
social teachings of the Church which has
particular relevance to our subject con-
cern, the following signal doctrinal stance
is expressly and clearly forwarded:
“Among the deformities of the demo-
cratic system, political corruption is one of
the most serious because it betrays at one
and the same time both moral principles
and the norms of social justice. It compro-
mises the correct functioning of the State,
having a negative influence on the rela-
tionship between those who govern and
the governed. It causes growing distrust
with respect to public institutions, bring-
ing about a progressive disaffection in the
citizens with regard to politics and its
representatives, with the result of weaken-
ing institutions.” (Cf. John Paul II,
Sollicitudo rei socialis, 44).
In other words, corruption plus graft
destroys democracy,
ruins morality, vio-
lates social justice,
ruins state functions,
alienates the govern-
ing and the governed,
undermines social in-
stitutions, depreci-
ates politics and poli-
ticians.
Conclusion
By way of end-
ing this little paper with a more recent and
concrete glaring example of graft and cor-
ruption, it would suffice to look into the
atrocious costing of the purchase and
installation of lampposts in Cebu on the
occasion of the much trumpeted 12th
ASEAN Summit last January:
a. There were no less than 1,800 lamp-
posts bought and placed along the
“ceremonial route” of the Asean Heads
and Delegates on their way to their
convention site.
b. In Mandaue City, the simple lamp-
post cost but P7,536.00 each, while the
tipple armed structure only cost
P9,523.00 each.
c. Lo and behold, after their purchase
and installation the lamppost cost the
government no less than P300,000.00
each!
The Philippines has not earned the
odious and shameful title of the “Most
Corrupt in Asia”—for nothing! I
 ARTICLES

E
lection time is here again. Surveys
from Pulse Asia taken last January
29 before the start of the campaign
showed Loren Legarda leading the pack of
the Genuine Opposition (GO)
senatoriables. A second survey was done
in March and the results were essentially
the same—the Genuine Opposition lead-
ing over the Team Unity (TU) candidates.
Atty. Adel Tamano, the GO campaign
manager, taunted Team Unity for its poor
showing in these surveys. Of course, the
Administration’s spokesman, Secretary
Gabriel Claudio was quick to demolish the
early claim of the Opposition. The local
government leaders, he avowed, 90% of
whom promised support and allegiance to
the Administration, will deliver a 9-3 or 8-
4 victory in TU’s favor when election time
comes.
How accurate are these surveys?
Aside from its use as material for political
campaigns and the like, what reactions are
expected by those affected by the sur-

The
veys? In the recent survey published in
March, of the Political and Economic Risk
Consultancy (PERC) of Hongkong, the
Philippines was rated No. 1 as the most
corrupt of 13 Asian economies. We beat
Indonesia which was always ranked higher

Measurement
in the corruption index than the Philip-
pines. The Philippine government and pri-
vate sector complained with reason that
the survey was inaccurate, a mere percep-
tion that contradicts the results of a recent
survey made by the Social Weather Sta-

tion (SWS) of Mahar Mangahas which
showed more encouraging results. We
quote the SWS report—”The Philippines
scored 73 and was classified as moderate
in the 2006 Global Integrity Index. The
Philippines is rated as strong in the Cat-
egory of Oversight & Regulation (85); as
moderate in Civil Society, Public Infor-
mation and Media (72); Government
Accountability (71); Administration &
Civil Service (73) and Anti-Corruption
and Rule of Law (78). In the Global Integ-
rity Index on 40 countries, the Philip-
pines was rated very weak in the category
of Elections (60).” This should give us
pose—instead of believing outright and
emotionally reacting to results of new
surveys, we should instead question how
these surveys are done, by whom and for
what purpose.
The accuracy of surveys depends to
a great degree on the measures used. The
use of statistical sampling and other means
like the use of baseline indicators, prop-
erly validated, can be used to extrapolate
the outcome to give a credible rating, e.g.,
of Corruption
By Jose B. Lugay
the majority voters’ choice. The technol-
ogy of measurement is now as scientific as
it could be. In the case of the PERC it is only
one of the 10 world institutions who pro-
vided data for theCorruption Perception
Index (CPI) which surveyed 163 countries
in the world. They used a list of Frequently
Asked Questions (FAQ) to get the “resi-
dents” “viewpoints which correlate well
with those of “experts” abroad. In the case
of PERC, they used only the opinions of
1,436 expatriate businessmen, with no in-
puts from the local businessmen.
It is interesting to note that the 2006
CPI survey on corruption, the Philippines
ranks No. 4 with Myanmar as No. 1, Cam-
bodia No. 2 and Indonesia No. 3. What is
notable is the final comment of Transpar-
ency International, which we quote, “As
the index is based on polls, the results are
subjective and are less reliable for coun-
tries with fewer sources. The poll results
must be understood as measuring public
perception rather than being an objec-
tive measure of corruption.”
How does one measure corruption in
an objective way? In a recent meeting last
February 26, 2007, the measurement of
corruption was done by the World Bank in
its Country Procurement Annual Report

Volume 41 • Number 5 21
The Measurement of Corruption
(CPAR) deliberation. I believe the process
is more objective than opinion surveys.
Representing the CBCP-LAIKO, and hav-
ing been involved for the past 3 years in
the government procurement process as
Observer, I was invited by the World Bank
and Government Procurement Policy Board
organizers to attend a meeting to deliber-
ate on the corruption index for procure-
ment. Now it is clearer to me how they
ranked the Philippines next to Indonesia
and Vietnam in the year 2000 as the top
three most corrupt countries in East Asia.
This past year however the Philippines
showed a good measure of improvement in
governance.
The exercise given to the participants
was to discuss the validity of the observa-
tions using Base Line Indicators, orBLI’s.
These are measures of systems of good
governance, its laws and policies; and
how implementation is managed and re-
ported for corrective action. To be measur-
able, these Base Line Indicators are
grouped into four pillars, namely,
Pillar I – Legislative and Regulatory
Framework
Pillar II – Central
Institutional "It is a challenge however, to the
Church in the Philippines,
Framework
Pillar III – Procure-
ment Operations
particularly the Catholic Lay
Pillar IV – Integrity
and Transpar-
ency of Procure-
ment.
Each Pillar has 3
or 4 indicators with
Organizations, to undertake the
their sub-indicators
and is correspond- moral regeneration program. "
ingly rated. The score
of 3 is the highest and
0 is the lowest. Once the four pillars and
their corresponding indicators are ap-
proved by the World Bank and the OECD
donors, these are going to be used to
measure the participating countries’ pro-
curement performance. For comparison,
each country will be rated using the Com-
pliance Performance Indicator or CPI and
will be ranked accordingly.
The findings that are of most concern
to me as a technical man serving the Coun-
cil of the Laity, is the concentration of the
corruption measurement on its adherence
to the legal system, the procedures, the
management system and the areas for the
improvement for good governance. It
would seem from the discussions that
when all the above pillars and indicators
are measured, and assuming the govern-
ment, lawmakers and local executives fol-
22 IMPACT • May 2007
low the ideal system of governance of
procurement, all is well and done—cor-
ruption may now be a thing of the past!
Yes, the legal framework was rated almost
perfect with the passage of Republic Act
9184, the new government procurement
law, receiving a very high score! Will this
mean that the Philippines will now suc-
ceed in eradicating corruption? Not quite!
What is missing in the whole equation
is the moral aspect of corruption. The
measures arrived at, the Base Line Indica-
tors, are measures of performance in imple-
menting the procurement system. Corrup-
tion in procurement is an activity that
occurs between the supplier and the pur-
chaser—between the private sector and
the government sector. The root of cor-
ruption is a moral problem of individuals,
hence, it can only be solved by formation.
As we are predominantly Catholics, the
moral problem is addressed by conversion
and evangelization of the laity. The inter-
vention for change therefore should be
the training of participants of procurement
in the private sector, the government sec-
tor and civil society. The training syllabus
aside from subjects of procurement, the
governing law, systems management and
professional ethics, should include basic
Catholic doctrines from the Compendium
of the Social Doctrine of the Catholic
Church for the moral formation of all Catho-
lic procurement practitioners in govern-
ment and the private sector. How can this
movement be funded? It is a fact that the
World Bank which receives donated funds
from OECD countries will not support fund-
ing for religion-related activities. Funds
must be coming from the private sector
and the Church.
As observed, the approach to solving
the problem of corruption by the World
Bank does not address the root cause
which is moral in nature - the violation of
buyers, suppliers, bribe givers and bribe
takers, is a sin against one of the ten
commandments of God—Thou Shalt Not
Steal. Nevertheless, the World Bank’s
Country Procurement Assessment Report
(CPAR) and their methodology to measure
corruption should be supported by the
government regardless of its weakness.
Hopefully what it lacks in moral formation
has been addressed partially by the Presi-
dential Anti-Graft Commission’s (PAGC)
Integrity Development Action Plan. Us-
ing 4 strategies of corruption prevention,
investigation and strategic partnership,
inculcating these to 70 government agen-
cies, has resulted so far in rating these
agencies as compliant with 22 doable anti-
corruption measures. PAGC chairperson,
Constancia de Guzman recently an-
nounced the ten most compliant agencies
of the anti-corruption program of the IDAP.
They are the 1) DOH, 2) DSWD, 3) DOST,
4) DTI, 5) BIR, 6) DPWH, 7) PNP, 8) Office
of the President, 9) DepEd, 10) MMDA.
This is a good sign that there is improve-
ment in the government’s advocacy drive
for good governance.
It is a challenge
however, to the Church
in the Philippines, par-
ticularly the Catholic
Lay Organizations, to
undertake the moral re-
generation program.
The parishes must re-
double their efforts to
catechize the youth
and support family
evangelization pro-
grams. Everybody has
a stake in the redemp-
tion of this country
from the evils of cor-
ruption. Hopefully we elect legislators
who are morally formed and untainted by
corruption. Their pork barrel allotment,
which will be sourced from the Priority
Development Assistance Fund (PDAF)
now amounts to P11.445 Billion for the
year 2007 and could be the handy source
of funds to recover their election ex-
penses.
Needless to say, the electoral candi-
dates with high integrity and good moral
foundation should be known by the elec-
torate—their background and track record.
It is not easy since there are about 38
names they should know by heart—their
senatorial, congressional and local gov-
ernment and party list candidates. Let us
all help the Parish Pastoral Council for
Responsible Voting (PPCRV) that is now
doing this job. I

Corruption Not Population
“15 Million Pinoys Live on $1/Day”—thus reads
and rings the recent headline of a known broadsheet as
a finding of the World Bank. A likewise known survey
made earlier said that a big majority of the respondents
favored the use of contraception for the country… and
as expected, vote-hungry politicos hurriedly aligned
themselves with anti-population advocates.
Irrespective of their political affiliations, ethical
persuasions and/or social beliefs, it can be rightfully said
that all anti-population crusaders sing one and the same
song: the bigger the population, the more is poverty.
The lesser the population, the greater is prosperity.
This is a good example of superficial thinking, quick-
fix mentality and a pitiful perception of the nature,
dignity and value of human life. They perceive people
merely as mouths to feed, bodies to clothe, heads to
shelter. Conclusion: the less people there are, the more
food, clothing and shelters there will be—plain and
simple logic!
Wrong!
Were it not for its big populations, where would this
Administration get its big multi-billion E-Vat money to
EDITORIAL
fund its glorious plans and super programs? Were it not
for its big population, could this government have its big
multi-billion OFW remittances to keep the country
financially afloat and to enable it to borrow even more
and more money from the World Bank—for the citizens
to pay from one generation to another?
The poverty in the country is not on account of its
population but due to endemic graft and corruption in
government. The Filipinos are poor because the Philip-
pines is the most corrupt country in the whole Asian
continent. Honesty in government is what brings
prosperity. Thievery in public office is what makes the
citizens live in poverty.
Human persons are not merely heads to count but
potentials to develop and wealth to care for. When their
government steals what lawfully belongs to them, it is
then that they become a social liability. Every single
Filipino pays direct and/or indirect taxes from birth to
death. They pay for government services they do not
get, for public education they do not receive, for the
common welfare they do not enjoy.
No wonder they are poor!
Volume 41 • Number 5 23
N E W S
FEATURES
Waiting for Justice, Funeral for
Murdered Missionary is Held
MANILA, April 11, 2007—The fu-
neral of Fr Francis Madhu, a Divine
Word missionary from Flores Island
killed on Good Friday as he was pre-
paring to celebrate mass, took place
yesterday at Christ the King Semi-
nary in Cubao, near Metro Manila.
More than a hundred people,
including local priests, Catholic mis-
sionaries and Muslims attended the
service. Three bishops were also
present.
Msgr. Prudencio Andaya,
bishop of Tabuk, called the incident
“an incredible crime, a shattering ex-
perience to all of us.” He added:
“There are many who can testify that
Father Madhu was killed for no rea-
son. We condemn this crime and
demand justice.”
Similarly, Indonesia’s ambassa-
dor to the Philippines, Irzan Tanjung,
said “We hope that the Filipino
government will soon conclude the
24 IMPACT • May 2007
whole investigation into this sense-
less murder, and we are sure that
justice shall prevail. We are close to
the family and very saddened by this
ugly story.”
Meanwhile police have already
detained Nestor Wailan (aka Sukman),
the man who carried out the murder. A
farmer from the northern province of
Kalinga, he shot Father Madhu five
times with a rifle when the latter was
making his way to Barangay
Mabungot to celebrate mass.
Police are also trying to deter-
mine the degree of involvement of
two other men who were detained as
a result of the incident, Joel Awingan
and Acmor Bonggawon.
For the police, the men acted
under the influence of alcohol and
drugs. However, local residents re-
fused to co-operate with police fear-
ing retribution. (Santosh Digal /
AsiaNews)
Philippines most
Corrupt Asian
Nation
HONG KONG, April 16, 2007—The most
corrupt system in the Political and Eco-
nomic Risk Council Asian continent is the
Philippines. That’s according to recent in-
vestigations conducted by the Hong Kong
based centre Political and Economic Risk
Council (PERC), in a report published last
March 13. The Council report states that
“politician’s empty promises to combat cor-
ruption have tired investors”.
The data was collected from interviews
with over 1,476 business men who are op-
erative throughout the Asian continent.
Results show that Manila “has the worst
track record among foreign investors”,
whereas China, Indonesia and Vietnam have
progressed in their fight against corrup-
tion.
According to investors, Hong Kong
and Singapore are the “economically
cleanest” countries, but the latter’s situa-
tion “is worsening because foreign inves-
tors taking advantage of the Asian corrup-
tion seek refuge for their illicit earnings in
Singapore, where thanks to the presence of
new industries they have found a haven for
recycling their money”.
In fact Indonesia followed by Thailand
found the second place in the survey. The
PERC has confirmed that the campaign of
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to
combat corruption “has produced some
‘positive results, but is still swimming up-
stream”.
In Thailand corruption has worsened
even if some improvement is expected fol-
lowing September military coup which un-
seated Prime Minister Shinawatr, and saw
the military junta assumed power promising
to combat illegal trafficking. Despite this,
the Council maintains that “there is no
reason to believe that their behavior will be
more transparent than there predecessors”.
The report puts China in seventh place
among the continents of most corrupt na-
tions while Vietnam is in tenth place. These
countries “have improved their placing, but
this improvement could be due to the fact
that there is no open debate on corruption”.
In fact, “mass media, be it Chinese or Viet-
namese are strictly censured and the only
bad news that these governments allow to
published are those considered right for the
general public”. (AsiaNews/Agencies)

The “Cost” of
Discrimination
against
Women in Asia
BANGKOK, May 5, 2007—Despite the
progress of recent years, social dis-
crimination against women remains a
serious problem, which does not only
have grave social consequences, but
also causes heavy economic losses.
A report by the Economic and So-
cial Commission for Asia and the Pa-
cific (ESCAP), states that the region is
losing about 42 billion to 50 billion dol-
lars annually because of restrictions on
women’s access to employment oppor-
tunities.
According to the study paper by
the Bangkok based UN group, sexual
discrimination in the fields of education
and employment persist, while progress
has been made in female participation in
the world of politics.
Female primary school enrolment is
about 26 per cent lower than that of
males, while violence against women
continues unabated in the region. In
some countries, states the report, one
in every ten girls dies before reaching
the age of one, and one in every 50
women dies during pregnancy and de-
livery.
Still, the Asia-Pacific region, which
produced women leaders in seven coun-
tries (India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan,
Bangladesh, Indonesia, the Philippines
and New Zealand), has made tangible
progress in several other areas. Since
1997, the number of women parliamen-
tarians in the region has increased by 50
per cent.
Filipino Bishops Celebrating Easter
on ‘YouTube’
MANILA, April 11, 2007—
In addition to those in
churches, Filipino bishops
celebrated Easter this year
on YouTube. They inaugu-
rated in fact their own
YouTube video blog last
week by posting Church
teachings and reflections
on the essence of Holy
Week for the benefit of Fili-
pinos, especially the
young, around the world,
thus heeding the call of the
late Pope John Paul II to
make the most of the Internet to spread
the Gospel.
“The launching was timed for Holy
Week, it being the most appropriate
time to issue short catechesis on the
liturgical significance of the celebra-
tions that have been most misunder-
stood,” said Msgr. Pedro Quitorio III,
spokesperson for the Catholic Bish-
ops’ Conference of the Philippines
(CBCP) and director of its Media Office.
The first CBCP video blogs fea-
ture Quitorio in a Holy Week series
where he discusses various Easter tra-
ditions, such as the Washing of the
Feet, Visits to Churches and the Ven-
eration of the Cross.
The “CBCP’s YouTube account
is intended for the young faithful to-
day who are more inclined to listen to
the latest technology rather than the
age-old-sermon,” he said. “It seemed
a good way to reach our target audi-
ence.”
The largest representation of
women in parliaments was in New
Zealand, followed closely by Vietnam,
Turkmenistan and East Timor. The low-
est representation was in Papua New
Guinea, Bangladesh (which produced
two women prime ministers) and
Vanuatu. There has been “tangible
progress” also in other sectors.
Women’s life expectancy has increased
from 44 years during 1950-1955 to 70
years in 2000-2005.
Robert Vos, director of the UN’s de-
velopment policy and analysis division
N E W S
FEATURES
As of April 8, Easter Sunday, the
CBCP has posted nine video blogs, the
latest of which is the Easter Vigil cer-
emony, including the homily by Manila
Archbishop Gaudencio B. Cardinal
Rosales.
Msgr. Quitorio said that issues re-
lating to the environment, gambling,
politics, and the family would be loaded
on the video blog after the Holy Week.
Since its start, the video blog has
become a place where many faithful
both within and outside the country can
interact with the prelates.
On Sunday, a Filipino living in the
United States wrote: “I am so happy that
you are now in YouTube. Filipinos like
me find it convenient to listen to the
words of God in the sanctuary of our
homes. How I miss our Christian rites
and traditions during the holiest of weeks
[even if here] in the Midwest we tried and
exerted our efforts to observe Holy
Week.” (Santosh Digal / AsiaNews)
said the region is losing about 42 billion
to 50 billion dollars annually because of
restrictions on women’s access to em-
ployment opportunities. At the same time,
he said, the Asia-Pacific region is also
losing an additional 16 to 30 billion dol-
lars a year because of gender gaps in
education. “If female workforce partici-
pation was placed on a par with devel-
oped countries, such as the United States,
India’s gross domestic product (GDP)
would increase by about 1.08 percentage
points—a gain of about 19 billion dol-
lars,” said Vos. (AsiaNews/Agencies)
Volume 41 • Number 5 25
ARTICLES
Salafist
Islam
Spawns
Islamic
Terrorism
by Samir Khalil Samir, SJ
A
t the very roots of the violence is an
ideological interpretation of the
Koran, rather than mere reactions
to Western aggressions. The time has come
for Muslims to react to this blind and
childish style of religion.
THE bloody attacks on Algiers, along with
Morocco’s suicide bombers once again
show that Islamic fundamentalist violence
is born of violence within Islam itself. This
is contrary to what some Western observ-
ers would have us believe, that it is a reac-
tion to “western aggressions”. The root
cause lies within a certain current in Muslim
thought.
Islamic terrorism is caused by Islamism
that is a certain mode of reading the Koran
and Sunnah, which has become widespread
in Muslim schools and Universities, such
as Cairo’s Al-Azhar. Islamic terrorism—
particularly in the Sunni world—is caused
by Salafism, in short a blind attachment to
the tradition of the Ancients that preceded
us (Salaf), a literal and rigid reading, without
life and without soul.
Terrorism is not an Islamic disease: it is
merely the manifestation of a far more deeply
rooted illness, of a certain way to interpret
life and the Islamic religion. As a result,
terrorism cannot be fought by force alone,
but must be countered with a culture that
promotes a more open interpretation of the
Koran.
Ideological and Islamic terrorism
Islamic terrorism is neither gratuitous
nor brutal violence, it is a religious ideol-
ogy. It is seen as a sacred duty, the concrete
application of divine will, as clearly ex-
pressed in certain excerpts of the Koran and
in some of the practices and sayings of
Islam’s Prophet.
Terrorists and Islamists consider the
majority of Muslims who do not agree with
this point of view to be hypocrites
(munâfiqûn), as God himself defines them in
26 IMPACT • May 2007
the Koran, thus they are not worthy of to be
called Muslims.
And the Muslim states? They are not
Islamic, but a caricature of Islam: their hy-
pocrisy is far greater, because they founded
their constitutions on western standards
(which is for the most part true) merely
adding Muslim elements. In doing so they
have “deceived” their people. They are
worse still than the Western States and
governments who at least do not deceive
Muslims!
These are the type of Islamists we see
every day on the streets of Muslim coun-
tries. The Algerian Salafists, the Afghan
Taliban make up a small part of this giant
spider’s web, which spawns terror far be-
yond the Middle East: in Pakistan, Somalia,
Northern Nigeria, Egypt, Morocco, Saudi
Arabia, Iran, Malaysia, Indonesia ... and
tomorrow in Europe. My intention is not to
alarm. I only wish to underline that the web
spreads by its very nature where it finds
fertile ground.
The relationship between Islamism
and Salafism
It is essential that the intrinsic link
between Islamism and Salafism is under-
stood, as well as the difference which sepa-
rates them. Salafist thought is rooted in the
Koran and the Sunnah, in other words it
finds its justification and elaborates its
thoughts and way of life within these texts.
Salafist thought was not borne of this
century, but goes far back to the early years
of Islam. This tradition is one of the most
interpretative of the Koran and Sunnah.
The Islamist current basis itself on the
Salafist interpretation of Islam and it
radicalizes it, turning it into a concrete ap-
plication, through intense propaganda and
presenting it as authentic Islam. It renders
Salafism extreme, by prescribing precise
rules applied to the actions of daily living.
For example it regulates eating and
fasting habits, they way to dress and pray
according to a series of purification rituals;
it indicates how Muslims should relate with
others (according to whether they are men
or women, Muslim or non Muslim etc..), in
the choice of profession and how to exer-
cise it, in the use of money and how to invest
it, in sex (how, when and with who it can be
done) as with marriage: in short an unend-
ing list of every day gestures. Islamism
penetrates everything and leaves little space
to human freedom or personal choice.
Fatwa and puerile terrorism
A characteristic consequence of this
concept of Islam is the widespread social
phenomenon of the fatwa. In this picture,
the Muslim believer feels ignored by his
religion, incapable of discerning right from
wrong, of choosing between “Islamic good”
and evil. He is afraid of becoming a bad
Muslim such as those who surround him, all
because the Islamists have nurtured the
idea within the believer that he is the only
true Muslim. Thus, for any given reason the
believer turns to the ulema, asking for a
fatwa.
In Egypt this phenomenon has ar-
rived at an extreme: hundreds of thou-
sands of fatwa’s are issued each year,
often for nothing. Fatwa’s can be re-
quested via specialized telephones, or by
direct request to the Mufti’s, or even by
internet, television and radio. This re-
sults in reducing the faith and the faithful
to a childish, puerile state; making the
Muslim believer totally dependent and
robbing him of the ability to take on an
adult responsibility for his religious or
spiritual life.
Islamist thought forms people who
have renounced their right to think or make
personal judgments, to blindly follow teach-
ings of those who indoctrinate them. It
reduces the believer to the state of a docile
follower, incapable of critical thought. In
the end this docile follower can easily be-
come a terrorist: he only needs to be con-
vinced that what he is about to do is a
religious duty, which pleases God and will
save the Islamic community (ummah).
It is important not to confuse or iden-
tify Islam with Islamism, but is also neces-
sary that we push Muslims to reject Islamism
as an alteration of authentic Islam and to
fight against this spreading tendency.
Western society must defend Muslims from
Islamism. For this reason, giving even mini-
mal credence to the demands of the Islam-
ists is a regression which only serves to
open new terrorist fronts. I

PAGCOR
Gambit
T
he country excels in the violation
human rights to the extent of con-
tinually killing people who dare
question twisted government policies and
challenge sick national practices, people
who dare tell the truth about the socio-
moral errancies in public offices. The na-
tion is well divided in both political and
ideological principles. The people are be-
coming more and more poor, hungry and
sick. To date, the Philippines is even the
holder of the odious and shameful title of
the most corrupt country in the whole
Asian continent.
There is much crime in the streets.
Prohibited drugs are becoming more abun-
dant and available for adults and young
people alike. Numerous women and chil-
dren become objects of exploitation. There
is dire lack of decent work in the country.
The administration is much distrusted and
thereby disrespected. The forthcoming
elections are looked upon with fear and
reservation instead of the optimism it
should generate as an affirmation of de-
mocracy.
Lo and behold the deviate response
of the government to so many and serious
national problems: Put up a PAGCOR US
$20 billion dream project! Are people hun-
gry and sick? Make them gamble! Are
killers, criminals and thieves on the loose?
Make them go to casinos! Are there too
many grafters in government and corrupt
public officials? PAGCOR welcomes them
all with wide open arms.
The pervasive existence, the en-
hanced operations plus the projected multi-
billion peso “PAGCOR’s Las Vegas Dream”
only spell and mean one and the same
reality: the government is morally bank-
rupt. For the present administration, big
corporate gambling becomes a big na-
Poor Priests!
T
his is certainly not about priests
living in poverty. It is neither
about priests who are over-
worked but under-appreciated. This is
not even about priests who are killed—
or who are already marked to be killed—
in the performance of their ministerial
duties. This is about priests who for
one reason or another made the danger-
ous option to run for elective public
offices notwithstanding all advisories
and arguments to the contrary.
Needless to say, there is nothing in
the constitution of this country that
disqualifies priests from pursuing and
holding elective government positions.
By being priests, they do not become
less Filipino citizens. And whereas it can
be readily presumed that they know how
to read and write, there is nothing in the
law of the land that says they may not
vote or be voted upon on the occasion
of national and/or local elections in the
country.
But the universal Church has some-
thing to say about priests running for
elective public offices. After some two
thousand years of existence and experi-
ence the world over, there is the strong
presumption akin to moral certitude that
the Church has acquired some wisdom
in the ways of the world. It would be thus
hard to say that she is altogether igno-
rant about the nature, the workings and
implications of politics. There was even
a priest who became the president of his
country. But he ultimately proved to be
a big failure before his own people.
This is why there must be some-
thing serious and profound behind the
universal law of the Church that ex-
tional pride. This is why the national lead-
ership has no claim to moral ascendancy of
any kind, in any degree.
How much of PAGCOR’s take from its
gambling clients goes to whom and what
for? Is it true that according to PAGCOR
insiders themselves, recently no less than
an 8 million peso check was handed to a
boxer as a presidential gift for purposes of
his political campaign? All the while,
PAGCOR repeatedly and loudly professes
its noble and everlasting commitment to
uplift the poor, to fund charitable works, to
FROM THE
B L O G S
pressly and officially forbids priests from
holding any office that participates of
civil power or authority. This is exactly
the case when priests run for elective
public offices and in fact win the elec-
tions.
The truth is that it is a lose/lose
situation for priests running for elective
public positions. In other words, they
lose not only when they lose but also
when they win the elections.
They evidently lose when any of
the other candidates for the same office,
win the elections. But a greater loss is
what they do after losing. Would they
simply return to the priestly ministry as
a fallback, as the only recourse and
wherefore a non-option? This is like
someone leaving a wife to look for an
apparently better woman, only to go
back to her if the said woman eventually
rejects him.
When they win the elections, they
will be at a loss even more. What do they
do to the opposition politicians—not to
mention their constituents with the dif-
ferent socio-ethical convictions and
even contrary principles and political
beliefs? How will they exercise the power
they wield? What will they do with the
money that regularly and abundantly
goes their way? There is a whale of
difference between ecclesiastical and
civil administration, between religious
and political governance. In this con-
text, how on earth will those winner-
priests live their life of continence, their
spirit of poverty, their ecclesial com-
munion?
Just asking.
www.ovc.blogspot.com
promote human development.
One thing is certain: it is so hard to
perpetuate lies, to sell fantasies, to pro-
mote deceit, sooner or later the truth comes
out. In due time, liars, cheaters and thieves
are exposed and vanished. This is the
standing lesson of living historical present.
People eventually find the way of getting
rid of their exploiters and oppressors. Time
ultimately incapacitates and subsequently
terminates even a most pretentious poten-
tate, an odious filthy rich individual.
www.ovc.blogspot.com
Volume 41 • Number 5 27
FROM THE
I N B O X

W
hile walking down the street one
day a Philippine senator is tragi-
cally hit by a truck and dies. His
soul arrives in heaven and is met by St.
Peter at the entrance.
“Welcome to heaven,” says St. Peter.
“Before you settle in, it seems there is a

Vote
problem. We seldom see a high official
around these parts, you see, so we’re not
sure what to do with you.”
“No problem, just let me in,” says the
senator.
“Well, I’d like to, but I have orders
from the higher ups. What we’ll do
is have you spend one day in hell and one

in heaven. Then you can choose where to
spend eternity.”
“Really, I’ve made up my mind. I want
to be in heaven,” says the senator.
“I’m sorry, but we have our rules.”
And with that, St. Peter escorts him to
the elevator and he goes down, down,
down to hell.
The doors open and he finds himself
in the middle of a green golf course. In the
distance is a clubhouse and standing in
front of it are all his friends and other
politicians who had worked with him. Ev-
eryone is very happy and in evening dress.
They run to greet him, shake his hand,
and reminisce about the good times they
had while getting rich at the expense of the
people. They play a friendly game of golf
and then dine on lobster, caviar and cham-
pagne. Also present is the devil, who
really is a very friendly guy who is having
a good time dancing and telling jokes.
They are all having such a good time that
before the senator realizes it, it is time to go.
Everyone gives him a hearty farewell
and waves while the elevator rises... The
elevator goes up, up, up and the door
reopens in heaven where St. Peter is wait-
Wisely
ing for him, “Now it’s time to visit heaven.”
So, 24 hours pass with the senator
joining a group of contented souls moving
from cloud to cloud, playing the harp and
singing. They have a good time and, be-
fore he realizes it, the 24 hours have gone
by and St. Peter returns.
“Well, then, you’ve spent a day in hell
and another in heaven. Now choose your
eternity.”
The senator reflects for a minute, then
he answers: “Well, I would never have
said it before, I mean heaven has been
delightful, but I think I would be better off
in hell.”
So St. Peter escorts him to the elevator
and he goes down, down, down to hell.
Now the doors of the elevator open and
he’s in the middle of a barren land covered
with waste and garbage.
He sees all his friends, dressed in
rags, picking up the trash and putting it in
black bags as more trash falls from above.
The devil comes over to him and puts his
arm around his shoulders.
“I don’t understand,” stammers the
senator. “Yesterday I was here and there
was a golf course and clubhouse, and we
ate lobster and caviar, drank champagne,
and danced and had a great time. Now
there’s just a wasteland full of garbage and
my friends look miserable. What hap-
pened?”
The devil smiles at him and says,
“Yesterday we were campaigning ...To-
day, you voted.”
VOTE WISELY!
rowena.dalanon@cbcpworld.net

The Monk’s Vision

A
n old monk prayed many years for a vision from God to
strengthen his faith, but it never came. He had almost
given up hope when, one day, a vision appeared. The old
monk was overjoyed. But then, right in the middle of the vision,
the monastery bell rang.
The ringing of the bell meant it was time to feed the poor who
gathered daily at the monastery gate. And it was the old monk’s
turn to feed them. If he failed to show up with food, the poor people
would leave quietly, thinking the monastery had nothing to give
them that day.
The old monk was torn between his earthly duty and his
heavenly vision. However, before the bell stopped tolling, the
monk had made his decision. With a heavy heart, he turned his
back on the vision and went off to feed the poor. Nearly an hour
later, the old monk returned to his room. When he opened the
door, he could hardly believe his eyes. There in the room was the
vision, waiting for him. As the monk dropped to his knees in
thanksgiving, the vision said to him, “My son, had you not gone
off to feed the poor, I would not have stayed.”
The best way to serve God is to reach out in service to our
brothers and sisters, especially those less gifted than ourselves.
rowena.dalanon@cbcpworld.net

28 IMPACT • May 2007

 B O O K
REVIEWS

Responsible Citizenship II Penal Process for Dismissal

Essays on Civic Spirit and the Common Good from the Clerical State
Jesus P. Estanislao Oscar V. Cruz, JCD

“To make the common good of our people and of the The author posits that the raison d’etre for writing this book
whole country part of our operative, day-to-day concerns, is to come up with “as a little response to the signs of the
a continuing program of responsible citizenship for all is times regarding the imperative of cleaning the ranks of the
being launched. The program reminds each one of us clergy, of purifying the Church of flagrant and scandalous
that as Filipinos we do have civic duties and responsi- clerical offenders who are her big pain and shame.” Terrify-
bilities, and that these have ing, at first blush, this vol-
to be given as much stress ume seems to be and, to
as our rights and our demand do an overstatement, remi-
for privileges,” writes the au- niscent of a church of the
thor at the introduction. If only inquisition. But when you
for this philosophy, this book, get to read more pages of
which is a collection of short the book, you discover
essays on responsible citi- that, though written on a
zenship, is a good read. The largely canonical lexicon
common good is the defining but very precise in mean-
element of the art of gover- ing and intent, the book is
nance and politics; hence, it, actually very pastoral or
too, is the guiding rule of re- fraternal, if you may. In the
sponsible citizenship. Chris- midst of the media magni-
tianity being a gospel of love fication of clerical irregulari-
is a social doctrine that pur- ties that stretch all the way
sues as a matter of conse- from sexual misconduct to
quence the good of all. political or even ideological
The only rub is, many digressions, reading this
times Christianity has book gives one a sigh of
been lived so self- relief.
centeredly apart from
social responsibility.
Light to All
Leonardo Z. Legazpi, OP

The book is the man, and

Hearts rightly so in this volume
that databanks a collec-
Burning tion of essays and
speeches on selected sub-
Nil Guillemette jects over the years; but
more than just an anthol-
Father Guillemette is a ogy of brilliance, it’s actu-
prolific writer. He is supple ally an ecclesiology
in content but simple in couched in the ideas of a
expression. We first en- man who was right in the
countered him in his se- vortex of an “ecclesia sim-
ries of anecdotes that many have found very useful in giving per reformanda”. Archbishop Leonardo Legazpi was the
homilies, seminars and group dynamics. He is a graduate president of the Second Plenary Council of the Philippines
of the Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome and has spent which marked the biggest ecclesiological transition of the
years in teaching the New Testament in several countries Church in the Philippines, so far. The PCP-II was a subtle
in Africa and Asia. But this book which is a complete set of revolution that pointed out not only the realism of lights and
homilies for the three-year liturgical cycle is very interest- shadows of a Church that emerged fragile from the clutches
ing not because he is a scholar or a teacher. But rather of colonialism and a baroque ecclesiology, but more gently
because he is a pastor who has, like the Good Shepherd, trailblazed a new way of being Church through the basic
experienced the Word in the very lives of the flock. While ecclesial communities and a redefinition of discipleship.
this book is good for homilists, this is actually better for This volume noticeably presents the teacher and the shep-
ordinary Christians who wish to get nourished by God’s herd in a man who lives by his episcopal motto, “illuminare
Word in the concrete lives of people. omnes”.

Volume 41 • Number 5 29
ENTERTAINMENT

Title: PAN’S LABYRINTH mayed by the negative values of the film. In

Running Time: 112 mins
Lead Cast: Ivana Baquero, Sergi
Lopez, Maribel Verdu, Adriana Gil
Director: Guillermo del Toro
Producer: Guillermo del Toro
Screenwriter: Guillermo del Toro
Music: Javier Navarrete
Genre: Horror/Suspense/Fantasy
Distributor: Picture House and
Telecines Pictures
Location: Spain
Technical Assessment: 
Moral Assessment: zz
CINEMA Rating: For mature viewers 18
and above
It is 1944 in Spain. A small contingent of
Spanish soldiers under the command of Capt.
Vidal (Sergi Lopez) mans an outpost near the
mountains to rout the insurgents fighting the
Fascist government of Franco. Capt. Vidal’s
pregnant wife Carmen (Adriana Gil) arrives at
the camp with her eleven year old daughter
Ofelia (Ivana Bquero). Fond of reading
fairytales and creating her own, Ofelia thinks
herself to be the embodiment of the spirit of the
lost princess of the underworld Realm. She is
friendly to creatures of the wild like the large
mantis – like insect whom she thinks trans-
forms into a fairy. With her “fairy” guide she
explores nearby, an ancient stone labyrinth
where one can easily get lost. She meets a
fawn who instructs her on how she can return
to her Kingdom. While Ofelia communes with
these woodland creatures, she also witnesses
the violence and death during the war in the
world of men. In the camp is Mercedes (Maribel
Verdu) the housekeeper of Vidal and an in-
former of the rebels. The 2 women develop a
special relationship when Ofelia’s mother dies.
In danger of being unmasked, Mercedes leaves
camp with Ofelia but both are caught. In the
meantime, Ofelia has nearly completed the
tasks assigned by the fawn.
Pan’s Labyrinth (in Spanish with En-
glish subtitles) reveals the masterful touch of
Guillermo del Toro as director and writer. This
is especially evident in the clever handling of
the complicated story that adeptly inter-
weaves the world of reality with the world of
fantasy. So seamless is the integration that
one may easily suspend one’s disbelief in
fairies and the like. The title may suggest a
fairytale but this is not a tale of joy, light and
happy-ever-afters. Though spellbinding this
dark tale is full of painful anguish and is
steeped in vivid, raw details of brutality and
cruelty; all these are emphasized by the domi-
nant use of greys, sepia and muted black and
white images. Guillermo Navarro’s expert cin-
CATHOLIC INITIATIVE
FOR ENLIGHTENED
MOVIE APPRECIATION
ematography has also captured the quiet,
wild beauty of the unsullied woodlands which
when juxtaposed with the violent war scenes
brings out effectively the contrast and the
irony between the two worlds depicted.
Eugenio Caballero’s production design is
imaginative and the prosthetics and make-
up, very good. The story is replete with
symbolism. Character development goes
hand in hand with plot development. Thus,
as the story darkens Vidal becomes more evil.
The deliberate repetition of scenes empha-
sizes character traits. Lead actors do excel-
lent work, To be commended, too, is the rest
of the cast. There is judicious choice of music
pieces, such as the lullaby theme song that
sets the somber mood.
Much as one admires the craftsmanship
of Pan’s Labyrinth, one can also be dis-
ANSWER TO THE LAST ISSUE: THIS IS THE SO-CALLED CIVILIZATION OF 'CONSUMPTION'
AND 'CONSUMERISM' ...ONE QUICKLY LEARNS THAT THE MOREONE POSSESS THE
MORE ONE WANTS. -- POPE JOHN PAUL II
a war picture (and this is one, though it has
fairytale elements), one may assume there is
violence and death, but this picture accentu-
ates the inhumanity and cruelty of man vs.
another, especially in the gruesome torture
scenes and the killing of the wounded. Op-
pression and injustice are depicted in the
restriction of the villagers, subjecting them to
rationing of food and medicine. Then there is
the unjust murder of the innocent (rabbit
hunter) on mere suspicion. Though one can
understand the doctor’s motives, mercy kill-
ing is still killing. Little value is placed on
human life in the film. Vidal says that if a choice
has to be made between his wife and his son,
he wants his son saved at all costs. But this
is not moral. The wife’s life is as valuable as
that of the son’s. Effort should have been
exerted to save both. However, some posi-
tive values are shown by the love between
Ofelia and her mother Carmen. Though sick,
Carmen shows understanding of her
daughter’s imaginative nature and tries to
guide her. The admirable courage of Mercedes
and others who work in enemy territory calls
the mind our own resistance workers in World
War II. This adult fairytale is a parable that
resonates with Christian undertones as it
depicts the battle between good and evil. It
shows that conscience (verbalized by the
doctor) is the best weapon against fascism or
any ideology that violates human dignity and
rights. The film suggests that strength and
redemption comes through sacrifice and love.
Rated R-18, this film can be traumatic for the
very young.

30 IMPACT • May 2007


PAKISTAN
Catholics Calls for Re- UN Envoy Urges Child Power Fight Leads to 13 Group Urges Release of
ligious Freedom Protection
A street demonstration
was dramatically staged
by democratic and plural-
ist associations, move-
ments, unions, religious
minority groups last May
4 in Lahore to affirm civil
society’s desire to remain
secular be stopped. The
Association of Catholic
Women and the Catholic
Bishops’ Commission for
Justice and Peace backed
the protest saying they
wanted the civil society’s
voice to be heard so they
encourage them to ex-
press what they feel. The
protesters urged the gov-
ernment to secure and re-
spect freedom on religion
and expression.
EAST TIMOR
Church in E. Timor PMs Meeting with Pope
Pushes Peace Spark Hope for Peace
In pursuit for harmony
and fraternity and to build
healthy relationships be-
tween citizens of East
and West Timor, the
Catholic Church here has
launched a new program
of education to reconcili-
ation.
The Bishops’ Commis-
sion for Justice and Peace
held a series of meetings
aimed at promoting “au-
thentic reconciliation” in
the country’s two dio-
ceses—Dili and Baucau,
through communion, dis-
cussions and to share
feelings and dreams for
each other’s differences,
offences and failings.
ISRAEL
Deaths
A ranking UN official
called on the government
to take concrete measures
to uplift the living condi-
tions of Israeli children.
UN special envoy for chil-
dren and armed conflicts
Radhika Coomaraswamy
stressed that while peace
process in the Middle East
is being worked out, many
children continue to suf-
fer hunger, fear and des-
peration. “Children bear
the greatest burden of
conflicts,” she said. She
stressed the crucial role
to restore peace in the
Middle East but the effect
to the children in the re-
gion must also be put into
consideration.
SRI LANKA
A new hope has sparked
for a possible end to 20
years of bloody conflict
between the government
and the Tamil rebels here.
This after Sri Lanka’s
Prime Minister Mahinda
Rajapaksa met Pope
Benedict XVI in Vatican
recently. The Pope asked
the Premier to guarantee
respect for human rights
and to “return to the path
of dialogue and negotia-
tions, the only way to end
the violence which blood-
ies the Island”. Rajapaksa,
meanwhile, assured the
Pope saying: “we are ready
to open negotiations im-
mediately.”
N E W S
BRIEFS
IRAQ NEPAL
Nepal’s Child Soldiers
Suicide bombers An international hu-
killed at least 13 people man rights group urged
in a pair of attacks on Nepal’s former commu-
May 7 around the Sunni nist rebels to free chil-
Arab city of Ramadi, in dren from their armed
what officials said was forces. Human Rights
part of a “power Watch said the thousands
struggle” between al- of child soldiers who are
Qaeda and tribes that confined in camps under
have broken with the ter- a peace agreement should
ror network. In all, at be allowed to return to
least 68 people were their families. The group
killed or found dead na- called on Nepal’s Minis-
tionwide. ter to Women, Children
and Social Welfare
MALAYSIA Khadga Bahadur
Bishwakarma “to secure
Rights Group: Disband the Maoists’ cooperation
Abusive Volunteer with the United Nations
and child protection agen-
Corps cies to allow children to
return home without fur-
Human Rights Watch ther delay.”
said the government
should immediately take
steps to dissolve the VIETNAM
People’s Volunteer Corps
(Ikatan Relawan Rakyat Vietnam PM Approves
or RELA), responsible Tiger Farms
for numerous cases of
illegal detentions, unlaw- The government was
ful use of force, and ex- cited as saying Friday that
tortion. three private tiger farms
The government has in southern Vietnam will
ordered half a million be allowed to keep 43 of
RELA volunteers to help the endangered animals,
maintain public order, handing the breeders a vic-
primarily through the ap- tory over environmental
prehension of undocu- groups.
mented migrant workers. The story says that
In carrying out their du- Prime Minister Nguyen
ties, RELA volunteers al- Tan Dung decided that,
legedly often employ un- while the owners had
necessary force and ille- breached a ban on keeping
gal policing practices. the tigers, they were bet-
“The government has set ter equipped than
up what’s little more Vietnam's zoos to take
than a vigilante force to care of the animals which
target foreigners,” said cannot be released into the
HRW. wild.
Volume 41 • Number 5 31