Senator Panfilo Lacson. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
Let bygones be bygones.
Sen. Panfilo “Ping” Lacson now wants a reconciliation between the Aquino administration and the Catholic Church hierarchy after the passage of the controversial reproductive health (RH) bill.
Lacson said the two sides have the same good intentions.
“The church is against undue criticisms. But there are some bishops who are full of hatred and who engage in name-calling. I’ve been called a prince of darkness because of my push for the RH bill,” Lacson told radio station dzBB over the weekend.
“What’s difficult is the disinformation. We have been stressing on the floor that abortion remains illegal; that it wouldn’t be allowed. Yet every time, the church people deliver a sermon, they say that proponents are in favor of abortion,” Lacson said.
“And yet it’s clear that we’ve been quite careful so that abortion would remain illegal and wouldn’t be allowed in our country,” he added.
Lacson declined to identify his critic. “Suffice it to say that he’s a high up in the church hierarchy,” he said.
“Especially for the Catholic Church, you’re not supposed to express hate; do not hate. Don’t spread hatred among the people. They should be the ones to take the first step towards reconciliation. And hopefully, they should take the initiative to suggest reconciliation with the state,” he added.
“It’s clear in the surveys that if it isn’t 65-35 percent, it’s 70-30 percent of our countrymen are in favor of having a comprehensive program towards reproductive health,” Lacson said.
Lacson said some bishops bitter against RH bill proponents.
“Not all of them. Some are okay, sober and sensible. But there are other bishops who hurt when they speak. If you don’t see what they’re wearing while speaking, you wouldn’t think those saying those words are servants of the church,” Lacson said. Norman Bordadora