Go straight to aid, NGO groups--bishop
By Thea Alberto
INQUIRER.net
First Posted 15:35:00 11/18/2008
Filed Under: Poverty, Charity, Organized Crime, Churches (organisations)
MANILA, Philippines -- If you are feeling charitable this Christmas, go directly to the legitimate charity institutions instead of helping kids on the street, a spokesman for the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) said Tuesday.
Monsignor Pedro Quitorio said this would help discourage criminal syndicates from using beggars.
"If there are those who would like to help, give to the legitimate organizations or NGOs so that our assistance to the poor would be structured, otherwise . . . we might be duped. There are syndicates that take advantage,” Quitorio said in Filipino after a weekly forum in Intramuros, Manila.
He said while the spirit of Christmas must remain, the public must also be vigilant against "organized" groups that might be using church groups to gain donations.
|
