Gambling and donations

The Catholic Church should be firm in its resolve to fight gambling in the  country. Both legal and illegal gambling are immoral and violate  church teaching.

If gambling is not good, why is it legal in Rome and the United States?  The answer is that in Rome and the US, people are rich and have plenty of extra money to buy  lotto tickets.

In the Philippines, many of our people are poor but use money allocated for food, medicine, milk, schooling  and other basic needs  for lotto and gambling, thus depriving their children of  basic requirements.

It is but right for a priest to decline any monetary help, especially gambling proceeds,  from the government. In accepting gambling money, the church loses its moral ascendancy to fight  gambling.

The government has exposed the  practice  of  Catholic bishops receiving donations  from PCSO to buy  sports utility vehicles. The  Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) should come up with a clear policy on this matter.

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Allow me to congratulate Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma for having been elected president of the CBCP.

Palma deserves the post given his background especially as the new archbishop of Cebu. He is a very careful, sober  and deliberate church official who effectively avoids controversy though he is not afraid  to confront issues when needed.

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The Office of the Ombudsman  recently released the result of its investigation of the misuse of P10 million in pork barrel funds of former Congresswoman Clavel Asas Martinez in 2003. The anti-graft office  recommended the filing in court of charges of malversation of funds.

The funds were  intended as a donation to  the Girls Scouts of the Philippines.

Martinez is no longer a public official.

Why did it take  so long for the  Ombudsman to resolve the case?  Many had forgotten about the case though I  agree with the findings of the office.

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The fire that gutted three sitios in barangay Tejero, Cebu City forced the  city government to deal with the absence of an access road which made it difficult for fighfighters to penetrate the area.

Now the mayor wants to widen the road network to prevent a repeat of the tragedy.

If the property belongs to the city government, the mayor has the right to order the road widening.

I hope politicians don’t  make an issue about this because  the plan is for the good of Tejero residents.

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The Supreme Court decision on Hacienda Luisita has  met  oppostion  from both camps of tenant farmers and land owners.

Some  farmers saw the opportunity to raise the issue that involves  President Aquino.

The Palace, though  announced that Aquino had already divested himself of interests in the hacienda.

Still, it is best to put the issue to rest by distributing the land to  legitimate farmers of Hacienda Luisita and not to outsiders.