Churches mount black-and-white ribbon protest vs DAP
ILOILO CITY, Philippines — Instead of yellow, white and black ribbons have sprouted on Panay Island to protest corruption in government.
About 400 parishes of various religious denominations in Panay and Guimaras have launched a nine-day prayer campaign to push for the total abolition of all forms of pork barrel and end corruption in government.
The “Prayer for Moral Regeneration, National Conversion and Unity,” which started on Sunday, will end on July 28 when President Aquino will deliver his State of the Nation Address.
During the nine-day prayer protest, church members will attend Mass and offer prayers against corruption in government, according to Fr. Marco Sulayao, vicar-general of the Iloilo Diocese of the Philippine Independent Church.
“Various churches have come together because we believe that the evil Priority Development Assistance Fund and the Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP) live on and are even defended by President Aquino despite the Supreme Court decision ruling these were unconstitutional,” said Sulayao, also the spokesperson of the Promotion of Church People’s Response-Panay.
The churches and religious groups include the Jaro archdiocese of the Catholic Church, United Church of Christ in the Philippines, Convention of Philippine Baptist Churches and Western Visayas Ecumenical Council.
“We urge the faithful to pray for transparency in governance, and for honesty and true government service,” the groups said in a statement.
The church groups have also placed white ribbons in front of churches as part of their protest.
President Aquino earlier called on the public to display yellow ribbons to show support for his administration’s programs.
In the capital town of Kalibo in Aklan, militant groups led by the Bagong Alyansang Makabayan distributed black ribbons in government offices in protest of the President’s defense of the DAP and his apparent rebuke of the Supreme Court after the high court declared the controversial fund unconstitutional.
The protesters also tied black ribbons around poles, trees and fences.
In Bacolod City, anti-DAP groups will hold a prayer vigil “for integrity and accountability in public service” at the San Sebastian Cathedral during the SONA, according to Fr. Felix Pasquin, Cathedral rector.
Pasquin said the President had violated the Constitution based on the ruling of the Supreme Court and his acts constituted technical malversation.
“The controversy is not about whether the DAP actually benefited our people, the controversy is about whether or not DAP is constitutional. The controversy is not about whether the President stole money or not. The controversy is about DAP money used to further the President’s agenda as in giving incentives to congressmen and senators in the (impeachment) case of Supreme Court Justice Renato Corona,” Pasquin said.
But Negros Occidental Gov. Alfredo Marañon Jr., defended the President.
He said a manifesto of support for President Benigno Aquino has been readied amid the DAP controversy.
Marañon also opposed calls for Budget Secretary Florencio “Butch” Abad to resign.
“Why, did he steal? Those who should be jailed are those officials who stole from the coffers of government,” he said.
Reacting to the church move, Marañon asked: “Why, does the church not have graft and corruption?”
The governor expressed support for Aquino because the President “is not corrupt.” The governor also said that “for the first time in the history of the country, the government has a surplus that is being used to further help the poor.”
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