Palace: No position yet on bill banning religious rites from gov’t offices

Presidential spokesperson Edwin Lacierda

MANILA, Philippines—Malacañang has yet to form an opinion on whether to support or thwart a House bill that seeks to ban religious symbols and ceremonies from government offices.

Edwin Lacierda, President Aquino’s spokesperson, said the administration will not issue a statement on the proposed law at this time and would just let Congress take on the bill.

“We still don’t want to talk about the matter. There’s still no issue because it has yet to go through the legislature. The process would still take long,” Lacierda said, adding that it was up the legislature to hold debates on the controversial provisions of the bill.

Also, Lacierda said, the administration has yet to receive legal opinions on the matter from the Office of the Solicitor General and the Department of Justice.