Bishop Jose Colin Bagaforo (Photo from CBCPNEWS.NET)
KIDAPAWAN CITY—The bishop of the diocese in Kidapawan City in Cotabato urged parishioners here to scrutinize political bets through a “LASER” test to make sure they were voting for the right persons in the upcoming elections in May.
Bishop Jose Colin Bagaforo, also the national director of Catholic Church-run Caritas Philippines, said LASER stood for lifestyle, actions, supporters, election campaign conduct, and reputation, all of which are important indicators to make sure voters were electing the right one into office.
“Whomever we elect mirrors our values in life,” said Bagaforo, who echoed his appeal during the Mass at Our Lady Mediatrix of All Grace Cathedral here on Sunday.
“If you opt for a womanizer or a thief, that reflects your values. If you have no problem voting for a murderer to office, then, you also become a murderer. That’s why moral ascendancy is important,” said Bagaforo, who delivered his homily in Cebuano.
Lifestyle check
“How can one correct a corrupt government official if he or she (candidate) is involved in corruption?” the bishop asked as he urged the faithful to actively take part in the May 9 national and local elections.
The prelate said voters should take the time to know the lifestyle of the candidates they were going to vote to find out whether they lived within their means.
He said the actions of candidates also reflected whether they were “corrupt, a murderer, a thief or a liar.”
It would also pay to scrutinize the candidate’s supporters to make sure the candidate’s friends are “not drug lords or criminals,” he added.
How the candidates conduct their campaign would also give voters an idea how that candidate would turn out to be once they assumed office. Thus, he said, voters should reject candidates who employ vote-buying, disseminate fake news and lies, and hire goons to harass opponents.
“We must know what kind of personality our candidates have. We don’t want to vote a murderer, a killer, a gambler, and most of all a corrupt official into office,” said the bishop.
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