Duterte declares October 26 holiday in Cebu for Cardinal Vidal's burial

PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte formally issued on Monday a proclamation declaring October 26, the burial of Cebu Archbishop Emeritus Ricardo Cardinal Vidal, as special non-working day in Cebu. 

Executive Salvador Medialdea, by authority of President, signed Proclamation 333 declaring October 26 as special non-working day in Cebu province, including the cities of Cebu, Mandaue, and Lapu-Lapu, to allow Cebuanos to pay their last respects to Vidal.

 "Archbishop Vidal has enjoyed great affection by the people in the Roman Catholic Church and deep respect by the people of other Christian denominations and Islamic faith," Proclamation 333 read. "It is but fitting and proper to give the people of the province of Cebu the opportunity to remember, honor and show respect, and join the interment of the late Archbishop Vidal," it added. Duterte's declaration came a day after his visit to Vidal's wake at the Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral on Sunday, October 22. The declaration of a holiday in Cebu was initially suggested by Presidential Assistant for the Visayas Michael Diño. Vidal, who passed away on October 18, will be interred in the mausoleum of Cebu Metropolitan on October 26. 

"A native of Mogpog, Marinduque, Vidal was appointed Coadjutor Archbishop of Cebu on August 26, 1981. He was installed Archbishop of Cebu on September 18, 1982 and elevated to the College of Cardinals on April 24, 1985. He also served as the president of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines from 1986 to 1987. - SunStar Philippines

Pope Francis has joined in mourning the passing on of Cardinal Vidal

Pope Francis is greeted by Cardinal Ricardo Vidal as he meets the cardinals for the first time after his election, at the Vatican, March 15, 2013. L’OSSERVATORE ROMANO

MANILA— Pope Francis has joined in mourning the death of Cardinal Ricardo Vidal, a leader of Catholics in Cebu for 29 years, commending his “untiring and devoted service to the Church”.

In a letter to Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma, the pope said he was “deeply saddened” to learn the death of the retired cardinal.

“I extend my sincere condolences to you, and to the clergy religious and lay faithful of the Archdiocese of Cebu,” Francis said.

The pontiff praised the cardinal “for his constant advocacy of dialogue and peace for all the people in the Philippines”.

“I commend his soul to the infinite love and mercy of our heavenly Father,” he said.

“As a pledge of consolation and hope in the Lord, to all who mourn his passing in the certain hope of the Resurrection, I willingly impart my Apostolic Blessing,” the pope added.

His wake started on the 18th at Cebu cathedral and will be held for eight days except on October 21 wherein his remains will be brought to the St. Pedro Calungsod Shrine, located inside the archbishop’s residence compound.

Vidal’s funeral will take place on October 26 at 9am at the cathedral. He will be buried at the mausoleum at the back of the sacristy. CBCPNews

‘Miracle’: Cebu’s Cardinal Vidal of Marinduque wakes up from coma

In the two days that Cebu Archbishop Emeritus Ricardo Vidal was in coma, his doctors thought it would be a miracle if he'd be revived. He opens his eyes Friday. 

CEBU CITY – Physicians attending to Cebu Archbishop Emeritus Ricardo Cardinal Vidal described the former prelate’s revival from a two-day coma as a miracle, saying they were preparing for the worst.

Vidal, 86, the country’s most senior cardinal, was rushed to the Perpetual Succour Hospital past 2 am on Wednesday, October 11, due to fever and shortness of breath. The retired cardinal, however, collapsed a few hours later in the same hospital and fell into a coma.

“We were preparing for the worst because he was not responding and was in a semi-coma state,” Dr Rene Josef Bullecer, one of Vidal’s physicians and a close friend of the prelate, told Rappler Friday afternoon.

Bullecer clarified though that the cardinal did not suffer cardiac arrest, as what has been reported by other media outlets, but fell ill due to sepsis, a result of a massive immune response to bacterial infection that gets into the blood.

“All his vital signs are now normal. His heart condition is normal. It was not cardiac arrest but sepsis. We still do not have any idea how he got the infection,” Bullecer said.

He added that Vidal’s team of physicians – composed of cardiologist, neurologist, and pulmonary specialist – said on Thursday, that it will take a miracle to revive Vidal based on his condition on Wednesday and Thursday. 

Archbishop Emeritus Cardinal Ricardo Vidal had hoped to bridge the gap between the Catholic bishops and President Rodrigo Duterte.

Due to the seriousness of Vidal’s condition, Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma administered the Sacrament of Extreme Unction, commonly called the final anointing, to Vidal last Wednesday.

“It was a miracle, indeed, that the cardinal opened his eyes this morning (October 13) and has become responsive after two days of being unconscious,” Bullecer said. He stressed, however, that Vidal was still unable to talk due to the apparatus attached to his mouth.

Vidal’s sense of pain has returned and he already reacted when doctors pinched him.

Bullecer, however, said the cardinal’s condition is still 50-50 and doctors continue to put him under thorough observation, although he personally said Vidal is showing good signs of recovery.

Bullecer added that doctors did their best to revive Vidal even as the retired cardinal had earlier told him that he no longer wants to be revived should he fall unconscious.

Vidal, whose resignation as Archbishop of Cebu on October 15, 2010, was accepted by Pope Benedict XVI, has been in and out of the hospital due to pneumonia. He was succeeded by Palma.

He is currently one of the 4 living cardinals in the Philippines, along with Manila Archbishop Emeritus Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales, Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle, and Cotabato Archbishop Orlando Cardinal Quevedo. – Rappler

Full story: Duterte's meeting with Cardinal Vidal

There is no substitute for peace.

Hoping to bridge the gap between Catholic Church bishops and the new administration, Cebu Archbishop Emeritus Ricardo Cardinal Vidal last Wednesday visited President Rodrigo Duterte in what the prelate considered a worthwhile encounter with the country’s Chief Executive.

Sitting on a wheelchair and accompanied by his nurse, Vidal, 85, paid a courtesy call on the President in Malacañang that lasted for almost three hours and ended with an assurance of the Church’s prayers for Duterte.

They didn’t discuss about controversial issues like extrajudicial killings and the possible revival of the death penalty that clashes with the Church’s doctrines.

But the country’s most senior cardinal said it was enough to establish a good rapport between the Catholic Church and the new President.

“I opened the door of communication with his government,” he said in an interview in his retirement house inside the Sto. Niño Village in Barangay Banilad, Cebu City on Friday.

Duterte earlier criticized the Catholic Church and the bishops for the supposed sins committed by the clergy. On one occasion, he described the Catholic Church as the “most hypocritical institution” and lambasted the bishops for supposedly attempting to convince the electorate not to vote for him in the recent general polls.

But Vidal said there was no tension when he met with Duterte.

When he arrived in the Music Room of Malacañang, the cardinal said Duterte bowed his head and kissed his hand.

“I didn’t want him to kiss my hand. Sabi ko sa kanya ‘Ako ang dapat mag-mano sa inyo kasi po kayo ang presidente namin.’ Pero sabi nya ‘Hindi! Mas mataas ka sa akin sapagkat kayo ay cardinal. Ako ay presidente for six years lamang. Kayo sa isang cardinal,” Vidal narrated.

(I told him ‘I should be the one to kiss your hand because you are the President. But he told me ‘No! You are higher than me in rank because you’re a cardinal. I’m the President of this country for just six years, while your are a cardinal forever).

Vidal said Duterte was pleased when he heard him speak Cebuano.

“Pagsalubong ko sa kanya, sabi ko ‘Maayong gabii, Ginoong Presidente.’ At sabi nya ‘Oy, di ba ikaw ay isang Tagalog, marunong pala kayong magbisaya.

And I told him, ako ay nasa Cebu ngayon. At natuwa siya. (When I met him, I greeted him ‘Good evening, Mr. President.’ And he said ‘Don’t you speak Tagalog? Why do you know how to speak Bisaya? And I told him, I’ve been based in Cebu for sometime),” he said.

Vidal, a native of Mogpog in Marinduque, served as archbishop of Cebu for 29 years before he retired in 2011.

He attended the three-day assembly of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) in Manila over the weekend before he dropped by Malacañang.

The cardinal went on to speak with Duterte who he said is “very simple and humble man.”

“He (President Duterte) was very relaxed when I visited him. In fact, he was just wearing slippers inside Malacañang. I tell you, he’s very, very much simple; a humble man. He’s easy to talk with, and you won’t be afraid to approach him,” Vidal said.

During their conversation, Vidal and Duterte exchanged jokes and spoke about their respective origins.

Had Duterte talked about his plans which the Catholic Church had opposed, Vidal said he would have said his piece to the President.

“But we didn’t talk of any of his policies because it was just a courtesy call. And he didn’t open any problem. Hindi`na ako nakialam. Gusto ko lang siya makita kasi nakagalit niya ang mga obispo eh. (I just want to see him because he had a spat with the bishops),” the cardinal said.

Although they met on some occasions in the past, Vidal said it was the first time he met and spoke with Duterte since the latter assumed the presidency last June 30.

Vidal said it would be better for the bishops not to exchange barbs with Duterte because it might not be good for the country and the Catholic Church.

“We need to have a good relationship with each other. That’s precisely the reason why CBCP didn’t make any statement after the plenary assembly,” the cardinal said.

Vidal said he assured Duterte of his and the Catholic Church’s prayers during his six-year tenure.

“The President told me that he needs our prayers very much because it’s definitely not easy to be President of this country because there are many work to do and problems to address,” he said.

“Sabi ko huwag po kayong mag-alala at kayo ay ipinagdadasal namin. (I told him not to worry for we are all praying for him),” he added.

Vidal said he strongly supports Duterte’s campaign against illegal drugs which have been a menace to society.

“Families are broken and the future of young people are destroyed because of illegal drugs. This has to stop,” the cardinal said. - Inquirer

Our Philippine President: Mano po to our Marinduqueno Cardinal

Mano po: Duterte has nothing but love and respect for Cardinal Vidal

He may have launched vicious attacks against some corrupt clergymen but President Rodrigo Duterte still has a lot of respect for one of the country’s most revered bishops.

In a video posted by Radio Television Malacanang (RTVM) on Twitter, the President shook the hand of Cebu Archbishop Emeritus Ricardo Cardinal Vidal and showed the gesture of “pagmamano” as a sign of respect during his courtesy call in Malacañang.

Vidal, who was in a wheelchair during his Palace visit, greeted the President in the Visayan dialect at the start of their closed-door meeting last Wednesday, July 13.

The cardinal’s visit comes a few weeks after Duterte criticized the Catholic Church for being “the most hypocritical institution.” He also accused some of its bishops of corruption for allegedly asking favors from politicians. - Politics.com

Cardinal Vidal, Mayor Vicky Lim's birthday today

Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma greets his predecessor Ricardo Cardinal Vidal on his 85th birthday on Saturday, February 6. Cardinal Vidal is a native of Mogpog, Marinduque

Also celebrating her birthday today is Mayor Vicky Lao-Lim of Gasan, Marinduque. Mayor Vicky is running for governor of Marinduque in this year's elections.

For Cardinal Vidal, IEC a journey of faith

Ricardo Vidal was 6 years old when he and other children received their first Communion the first time the International Eucharistic Congress (IEC) was held in the country in 1937.

Vidal later entered priesthood and rose to become a cardinal and head of the Cebu Archdiocese, the second biggest archdiocese in the country next to Manila.

Seventy-nine years later, the country is again host of the IEC, this time in Cebu City.

Now Cebu archbishop emeritus, Vidal would be at the other end of the Communion line. He would administer the sacrament to at least 5,000 children during Mass at the Cebu City Sports Center on Saturday.

Archbishop Ricardo Cardinal Vidal leads a Catholic Church ritual
marking the Jubilee Year in the Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral.

Vidal, the most senior cardinal in the country, said he looked forward to the event with a mix of excitement and nostalgia.

“I would see a replica of what I experienced in 1937,” he said.

Vidal recalled his thoughts as he received his first Communion at the 1937 IEC held at Rizal Park in Manila.

It was Vidal’s first time to set foot in Manila and the archbishop, a native of Mogpog, Marinduque province, remembered being amazed at the roads.

“In our town (Mogpog), only the sidewalk of well-to-do families was concreted and all of a sudden, I found all the roads in Manila were all covered with concrete. Then I said ‘all the people here must be rich,’” he said.

Vidal said it was his aunt, head catechist in their parish in Marinduque, who prepared him for the first Communion.

He also recalled seeing a cardinal for the first time.

“He was all dressed in red with a very long cape. I used to hold the cape of a reyna (queen) in our hometown fiesta. So my impression at that time was, ‘He was not only a priest dressed in red. He also looked like a reyna,’” the cardinal said, laughing.

Vidal said every first Communion is special since it’s the act of letting Jesus in your life for the first time.

“As Catholics, we believe that Christ is really present in the Eucharist—his body, blood, soul and divinity,” Vidal said.

One of those who would receive Communion from Vidal on Saturday, Marlon Lariosa, 11, said he was looking forward to the event.

A street urchin, Lariosa was recently introduced to the basic teachings of the Catholic Church by catechists.

He said he considered getting Communion an act of penance.

He said he used to throw stones at cars along the highway because he didn’t have any sense of what was right or wrong.

But learning about Christ changed his life.

Lariosa, of Barangay Sambag 2 in Cebu City, said he believed that his sins would be forgiven after receiving Communion.

Fr. Carmelo Diola said at least 500 street children, including Lariosa, would be among the 5,000 first communicants. The rest are pupils from different schools in Cebu.

Diola, IEC committee chair on solidarity and communion, said most of the street children are from Cebu City. A few are from the dioceses of Tacloban City in Leyte province, Tagbilaran City in Bohol province, Digos City in Davao del Sur province and Dumaguete City in Negros Oriental province.

Read full story on Inquirer

Congressman and Mrs. Lord Allan Velasco with Archbishop Ricardo Cardinal Vidal.

Flashback. The role of Cardinal Vidal in EDSA 1986

Cardinal Vidal in EDSA history 29 years ago

by Bobit S. Avila, Philstar

If the National Transformation Council (NTC) led by his eminence Ricardo Cardinal Vidal has called for the Aquino regime to step down, it is only classic Cardinal Vidal… after all history has recorded that Cardinal Vidal played a key role in the EDSA Revolt 29 years ago. Indeed, exactly 29 years ago, the United Nationalist Democratic Organization (UNIDO) held a massive protest rally at the Fuente Osmeña with Presidential guest candidate Corazon C. Aquino, widow of the late Sen. Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino Jr. and her vice-presidential candidate Salvador “Doy” Laurel explaining to the Cebuanos how Pres. Ferdinand E. Marcos cheated in the snap elections.

But suddenly their speeches were cut short because of events unfolding in Manila. I was with the group of Doy Laurel as the UNIDO was the only political party that I ever joined. It was around 5 p.m. when the rally abruptly ended and those of us close to Vice Pres. Laurel learned through the telephone that then Defense Sec. Juan Ponce Enrile and Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Vice-Chief of Staff Gen. Fidel V. Ramos apparently decided to hold out in Camp Crame and at 6:30 p.m., they held a presscon to announce that they had resigned from their positions in the Marcos Cabinet.

Allow me to reprint what is written in Wikipedia about the People’s Power Revolution in EDSA.

“Because of reports of alleged fraud, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) through Ricardo Cardinal Vidal issued a statement condemning the elections. The United States Senate also passed a resolution stating the same condemnation. US president Ronald Reagan issued a statement calling the fraud reports as ‘disturbing.’

“Cardinal Vidal, after the result of the snap election, issued a declaration in lieu of the Philippine Church hierarchy stating ‘a government does not of itself freely correct the evil it has inflicted on the people then it is our serious moral obligation as a people to make it do so.’ The declaration also asked ‘every loyal member of the Church, every community of the faithful, to form their judgment about the February 7 polls’ and told all the Filipinos, ‘It is the time to speak up. Now is the time to repair the wrong.         

“The wrong was systematically organized. So must its correction be. But as in the election itself, that depends fully on the people; on what they are willing and ready to do.’ After Cardinal Vidal’s condemnation of the snap election’s fraudulent result, a message was aired over Radio Veritas at around 9 p.m., Cardinal Sin exhorted Filipinos in the capital to aid rebel leaders by going to the section of EDSA between Camp Crame and Aguinaldo and giving emotional support, food and other supplies. For many this seemed an unwise decision since civilians would not stand a chance against a dispersal by government troops. Many people, especially priests and nuns, still trooped to EDSA.”

So is it wrong for the NTC to demand for the Aquino regime to step down? Well for sure, the NTC is not alone. No less than Presidential uncle former Rep. Jose “Peping” Cojuangco, husband of former Governor Margarita “Ting Ting Cojuangco is also asking the President to step down. I got it from former Defense Secretary Norberto Gonzalez himself that the NTC was approached by Peping Cojuangco, but was politely refused. Yet during the Cebu NTC Assembly last Oct. 1, Ting Ting Cojuangco was there to show her support even if she was not admitted to the NTC.

Last Sunday we learned that Justice Secretary Leila de Lima warned the NTC, calling it a loose grouping of disgruntled Arroyo allies, whose acts already constitute conspiracy or proposal to commit rebellion against the government. She warned the NTC that she will nor relent in applying the full force of the law against them in order to protect the people and the state from an unconstitutional and illegal power grab.

What’s wrong with Sec. de Lima and why is she resorting to name-calling? Before she opens her mouth, she should look at herself first before she points fingers at groups who are fed up with the incompetence of her boss. 

Message to the Filipino people - NTC, Faith community

“We cannot be apathetic. In the face of attempts to glorify evil and undermine the life of grace, Pope Francis spoke to us as individuals and as a nation in these words.

“Today, the Philippines, together with many other countries in Asia, face the challenge of building on solid foundations a modern society – a society respectful of authentic human values, protective of our God-given human dignity and rights,and ready to confront new and complex political and ethical questions. As many voices in your nation have pointed out, it is now, more than ever, necessary that political leaders be outstanding for honesty, integrity and commitments to the common good. In this way, they will preserve the rich human and natural resources with which God has blessed this country. Thus will they be able to marshal the moral resources needed to face the demands of the present, and to pass on to coming generations a society of authentic justice, solidarity and peace.” - NTC and Faith Community

This is the joint statement made by Ricardo Cardinal Vidal and leading bishops of Catholic and other Christian churches. Cardinal Vidal was joined by the following Catholic bishops and archbishops: Fernando Capalla, Davao Archbishop Emeritus; Romulo de la Cruz, Archbishop of Zamboanga; Ramon Arguelles, Archbishop of Lipa; Filomeno Bactol, Bishop of Naval; Jose Palma, Archbishop of Cebu; and Father Carlito Clase (on behalf of Bishop Juan de Dios Pueblos, Bishop of Butuan). Other Christian churches represented were Bishop Butch Belgica, Christians Bishops of the Philippines and Pastor Arthur Corpus, United Church of Manila.

Feb. 13, 2015

AN NTC AND FAITH COMMUNITY MESSAGE TO THE FILIPINO PEOPLE 
January 2015 was a period of intense unexpected grace for all Filipinos. The apostolic visit of Pope Francis challenged our people, Catholic and non-Catholic, Christians and non-Christians alike, to unify in deep faith, tremendously experiencing God’s presence as the Holy Father guided the people in the journey of mercy, compassion, love and peace. People followed him with joy wherever he went, intently listened to every word he uttered and made the slightest contact with him a never-ending moment. The spirit of the Lord was definitely upon us.

And yet, not many days later, in the midst of a deluge of grace, like a sudden blast of thunder and lightning, tragedy struck, tearing the nation apart.

On the 25^th of January, forty-four (44) members of the Philippine National Police Special Action Force met horrible death which could have been avoided but instead became a heart-breaking nightmare for the entire nation. The SAF commandos were mowed down, not just by enemy fire, but by deliberate and in-deliberate failure of government to provide support.
The response from the government as mis-articulated by the executive himself, deeply saddened the whole country, especially the bereaved of the 44 forsaken heroes. It extremely affected and angered the Filipino people due to continuous cover-ups and untruths. After past experiences of the usual indifference of the President in his reaction to crisis moments, the tragedy compelled many to demand his immediate stepping down for the sake of the nation’s future.

We, bishops of the Catholic and other Christian Churches, have often been asked if there is moral basis to this growing demand. Even long before the unfortunate events, the National Transformation Council (NTC) has strongly articulated that the President step down. Recent developments have made the call even more urgent and imperative.

Gaudium et Spes, the Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World, states that “The Church, by reason of her role and competence, is not identified in any way with the political community, nor does she claim competence in proposing solutions to concrete political and economic problems.” It counsels the laymen “not (to) imagine that his pastors are always such experts, that to every problem which arises, however complicated, they can readily give him concrete solution or even that such is their mission. Rather,enlightened by Christian Wisdom and giving close attention to the teaching authority of the Church, let the layman take on his own distinctive role.”

On the other hand, Gaudium et Spes also made it emphatically clear that “at all times and in all places, the Church should have the freedom to teach her doctrine and to pass moral judgment in those matters which regard the common good and fundamental rights and freedoms.” The Church and her pastors must never abandon their duty to denounce evil and to guide men, women and children in their active search for the truth and the good. Moral evil must be removed from the political and social system. This task, the Church and the political community cannot just leave them in the hands of politicians, no matter how virtuous they might be.

“We cannot be apathetic. In the face of attempts to glorify evil and undermine the life of grace, Pope Francis spoke to us as individuals and as a nation in these words.

“Today, the Philippines, together with many other countries in Asia, face the challenge of building on solid foundations a modern society – a society respectful of authentic human values, protective of our God-given human dignity and rights,and ready to confront new and complex political and ethical questions. As many voices in your nation have pointed out, it is now, more than ever, necessary that political leaders be outstanding for honesty, integrity and commitments to the common good. In this way, they will preserve the rich human and natural resources with which God has blessed this country. Thus will they be able to marshal the moral resources needed to face the demands of the present, and to pass on to coming generations a society of authentic justice, solidarity and peace.”

The Pope’s words inspire us as we listen to the call of God to “pay greater attention to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away from it”; (Heb. 2:1), to“approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Heb. 4:16); and to struggle against sin,even to the point of shedding our blood (cf Heb 12:1-4). 

This is the challenge to answer the call of our Christian faith and life. We must let go o four comfort zones, go to the peripheries and find the poor, the powerless, the marginalized and the neglected. With courage, we confront the seat of power and privilege. No doubt, the call on Mr. Aquino to step down is profoundly a moral issue that can no longer be ignored. 

The January 25 incident is the summit of many mishandling of the President’s obligations, revealing the subterfuge of illegal, unconstitutional and immoral foundation of the present regime are now evident. The urgent call from the NTC for the stepping down of the president and his cohorts resonates the general feeling of the people. His misrule clearly indicates his illegitimate claim to the position. His continuing stay endangers the lives of our people and adversely affects the moral landscape of the nation.

In our honest desire to protect our people from further degeneration, disasters and armed conflicts,we strongly demand that the whole government step down so our country can transform through a new and fresh start. Let the National Transformation Council, in a caretaker capacity, embrace the responsibility of forming a new government in anew system and context. 

We appeal to our fellow bishops and religious leaders of faith-based communities to join us in praying to God for his guidance for the renewal of the nation that is deeply rooted in faith values, love of country and respect for human life and environment.

On Aquino's stepping down: 'Sooner rather than later'

Sooner rather than later
Written by Tribune Editorial
Monday, 06 October 2014 

The Palace is again taking on a fireman’s job amid the spreading call for Noynoy to step down and amid charges of incompetence and outright abuse of power.

The standard response is that Noynoy has not been associated with any corrupt acts or even allegations on it, and that he is honest which are excuses for him to be considered a good leader.

Several civic groups, many of which were ardent Aquino supporters way back even before Noynoy’s mother, Cory, became president in 1986, are now calling for him to step down for various reasons including the crafting of the law that would create a Bangsamoro substate, his support for charter change, or cha-cha, Noynoy’s defiance of the Supreme Court order declaring unconstitutional the Priority Development Assistance Fund, the Disbursement Acceleration Program and the coddling of his corrupt allies.

Presidential spokesman Abigail Valte followed up on Edwin Lacierda’s effort to belittle the National Transformation Council (NTC) raising questions on the backing of the group.

Valte said that the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines has not acknowledged the Church’s support for NTC nor its aims, despite the laity making up the core of the group.

She added that Cebu Cardinal Emeritus Ricardo Vidal had denied asking Noynoy to resign.

The NTC, nonetheless, agreed with Valte that Vidal did not seek the resignation of Noynoy.

In a statement, it noted that neither the NTC nor Vidal nor the signatories of the Lipa and Cebu Declarations have ever asked Aquino to resign.

“This is contrary to what ABS-CBN, Edwin Lacierda, Franklin Drilon and others have been claiming. What NTC urges President Aquino to do immediately is to relinquish or to step down from his position,” according to the group.

The NTC said there is a difference between resigning and relinquishing power.

“If one asks President Aquino to resign, it means that one acknowledges him to be the duly-elected president of the Philippines, while if one asks him to relinquish or to step down from his position, it means that one is asking him to vacate the post of the President of the Republic of the Philippines because he is not duly-elected for that position by the people of the Philippines,” the NTC explained.

It insisted that Aquino and his allies “were illegally elected in 2010 and in 2013.”

That Noynoy and his allies manipulated the automated elections under his term in 2010 and 2013 was another reason the NTC gave for asking Noynoy to resign.

Semantics aside, the group is seeking a new order in which and Noynoy and his opportunistic allies are removed from power to allow the rebuilding of a government free from the corrupt practices that is said to be deeply ingrained in the fabric of the political system.

Noynoy and the Liberal Party (LP) represent the corrupt system sought to be perpetuated through a manipulated voting process. Valte said that the Palace does not intend to meet with any members of the NTC since they have not reached out to the administration to bring their demands on Aquino.

It seems that the Palace has issued an invitation for the group to be coopted, similar to what has been done to Akbayan, a former reformist group whose officials are either with Congress or have lucrative posts in government and no longer criticize the administration, despite its many criminal and unconstitutional acts committed by Noynoy and its allies.
The call for Noynoy to step down is valid and the complaints raised against him should have been reviewed exhaustively if not for his allies who swiftly dismissed all the impeachment complaints against Noynoy.

All that is being undertaken, including the supposed allegations of corruption against all leaders of the opposition, is in line with efforts to remove all hurdles for Noynoy and the LP to extend their dominance beyond 2016.

Noynoy and the LP should look back in history regarding the tipping point for the seemingly tolerant public.

Either through the vote or street protests, the abusers always end up booted out of power. - The Daily Tribune

Moral Leaders demand Aquino's resignation

"A crisis of unprecedented proportions has befallen our nation. The life of the nation is in grave peril from the very political forces that are primarily ordained to protect, promote and advance its well-being, but which are aggressively undermining its moral, religious, social, cultural, constitutional and legal foundations.”- LIPA DECLARATION, National Transformation Council

From Impact Magazine,
Published by the CBCP Communications Development Foundation, Inc.

Moral Leaders demand Aquino's resignation
By Charles Avila
Impact, September 2014

“Therefore, faithful to the objective moral law and to the universally honored constitutional principle that sovereignty resides in the people and all government authority emanates from them, we declare that President Benigno Simeon Aquino III has lost the moral right to lead the nation, and has become a danger to the Philippine democratic and republican state and to the peace, freedom, security and moral and spiritual well-being of the Filipino people.

“We further declare that we have lost all trust and confidence in President Benigno Simeon Aquino III, and we call upon him to immediately relinquish his position.”

-- From the August 27th “Lipa Declaration”

We had heard it up and down this beleaguered archipelago. Our moral leaders were about to make a pronouncement on the current political situation, as they did back in 1986 (Edsa I), then in 2001(Edsa II), and of a different kind in 2005.

In 1986 and 2001, as a result of their moral pronouncement, regime change became a moral necessity.

When they cautioned against regime change in 2005, such change did not occur despite Cory Aquino’s taking to the streets to demand that change. With her then were son Noynoy (now President), good friends Butch Abad (now DBM Secretary), Franklin Drilon (now Senate President), Cesar Purisima (now Finance Secretary), Dinky Soliman (now DSWD Secretary), Ging Deles (now OPAPP Secretary) and a few others then and now known as the “Hyatt Ten” but without Cardinal Sin (prime spokesman of moral leaders) who had already died.

The Hyatt Ten (so-called from their number and the name of the hotel of their meetings) needed to be “Thirteen” to apply the Constitutional provision for a “cabinet coup.” In Article VII, Section 11 of the 1987 Philippine Constitution it says: “Whenever a majority of all the members of the cabinet transmit to the President of the Senate and to the Speaker of the House of Representatives their written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, the Vice President shall immediately assume the powers and duties of the Office as Acting President….”

“A majority of all the members of the cabinet” meant thirteen, not just ten.

But though the Hyatt ten failed in 2005, they “made it back to power” five years later--after Cory’s passage to the Great Beyond enabled her to pass on to her son a surge of popularity in the wake particularly of corruption charges then flying uncontrolled against the Arroyo couple.

With the rumours regarding an impending moral judgment on the PNoy government, people were now also asking what principles guide, say, the Catholic bishops of this country to make or not to make regime-changing types of moral pronouncements. Do they have a “book” to go by? In fact, some theologians replied, they do, and it is called the Church’s Social Doctrine.

Basic Pointers from the Church’s Social Doctrine on Politics.

Many years ago, the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace made a “brief” 600-page “Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church” that touched on the whole gamut of topics relative to integral and solidarity humanism, complete with notes from the Bible and tradition and into the updates from Leo XIII to St. John Paul II, through St. John XXIII and Vatican II.

For instance, what does this book say regarding Jesus’ ”take” on political power? Jesus refused the oppressive and despotic power wielded by the rulers of the nations (cf. Mk 10:42) and ejected their pretension in having themselves called benefactors (cf. Lk 22:25), but he did not oppose political authority as such. In his pronouncement on the paying of taxes to Caesar (cf. Mk 12:13-17; Mt 22:15-22; Lk 20:20-26), he affirmed that we must give to God what is God's, implicitly condemning every attempt at making temporal power divine or absolute. At the same time, temporal power has the right to its due: Jesus did not consider it unjust to pay taxes to Caesar. [See par. 379.]

Christian moral leaders have always considered political authority to have been founded on the social nature of the person. “Since God made human beings social by nature, and since no society can hold together unless someone is over all in charge, directing all to strive earnestly for the common good, every civilized community must have a ruling authority, and this authority, no less than society itself, has its source in nature, and has, consequently, God for its author”. [See par. 393]

Political authority is therefore necessary as an instrument of coordination and direction by means of which the many individuals and intermediate bodies must move towards an order in which relationships, institutions and procedures are put at the service of integral human growth.

Political authority, in fact, “whether in the community as such or in institutions representing the State, must always be exercised within the limits of morality and on behalf of the dynamically conceived common good, according to a juridical order enjoying legal status” [See para 394.]

Moral leaders always prefer a “democratic system inasmuch as it ensures the participation of citizens in making political choices, guarantees to the governed the possibility both of electing and holding accountable those who govern them, and of replacing them through peaceful means when appropriate.” Authentic democracy, however, is “possible only in a State ruled by law.” [See para 406.]

In this regard they uphold “the validity of the principle concerning the division of powers in a State: it is preferable that each power be balanced by other powers and by other spheres of responsibility which keep it within proper bounds. This is the principle of the ‘rule of law', in which the law is sovereign, and not the arbitrary will of individuals”. [See para 408.]

For example, for the Executive to habitually buy out and run roughshod over the legislative and the judicial branches of government is indubitably to be out of bounds and in contempt of the rule of law. No matter how allegedly noble the ends, the means of merely following the tantrums or “arbitrary will of individuals” in the executive branch bodes ill for society as a whole.

The Philippine situation is quite a moral challenge: “hocus PCOS” to start with; the most audacious appropriation of more than a trillion pesos a year with neither authority nor transparency, uncontrite and holier-than-thou; a business community in full support so long as the top guy will just let them be, laissez faire. How about the people, the majority populace who get poorer amid the historic economic growth?

Going to Lipa

At first the rumours were that some 300 geographic and sectoral delegates nationwide were travelling in the direction of Lipa City, Batangas upon the invitation of the Catholic Archbishop of that area to hear and discuss important moral pronouncements on the political order.

It turned out, however, that not 300 but four times more -- some 1,200 such delegates, ncluding more than 50 from Muslim Mindanao -- made it on 27th August to the Archdiocesan gym in the premises of the Archbishop’s residence. With Lipa Archbishop Ramon Arguelles were Cardinal Emeritus Ricardo Vidal of Cebu, Archbishop Emeritus Fernando Capalla of Davao, Zamboanga Archbishop Romulo de la Cruz, Manila Auxiliary Bishop Bernardino Cortes, Butuan Bishop Juan de Dios Pueblos, Evangelical Bishop Arthur Corpus, Muslim Ulamas and Ustadzes, Datu Benjie Mao Andong, and several other moral leaders.

It was definitely a multi-sectoral gathering with the bigger numbers coming from the peasant and worker sectors and representatives of people’s or community organizations. The civilians formed the broad majority but there were as well prominent retired members of the Armed Forces of the Philippines peacefully chatting with equally retired freedom fighters of not-so-long ago.

As they said in their “Lipa Declaration: An Urgent Call for National Transformation,”
to which they affixed their signatures:

“We are Filipino citizens of different personal, professional, social and economic backgrounds and political persuasions and religious beliefs. We have gathered here in Lipa city on this 27th day of August A.D.2014/2nd day of Dhu Al-qa’da A.H. 1435, under the auspices of the National Transformation Council, to reaffirm our deeply held convictions and beliefs about the common good and our highest national interests, in the face of the most pressing challenges.”

Did they spell out these pressing challenges? Yes, they said: “Unbridled and unpunished corruption and widespread misuse of political and economic power in all layers of society have not only destroyed our common conception of right and wrong, good and bad, just and unjust, legal and illegal, but also put our people, especially the poor at the mercy of those who have the power to dictate the course and conduct of our development for their own selfish ends.”

They had earlier stated:

"A crisis of unprecedented proportions has befallen our nation. The life of the nation is in grave peril from the very political forces that are primarily ordained to protect, promote and advance its well-being, but which are aggressively undermining its moral, religious, social, cultural, constitutional and legal foundations.”

Not mincing words, the signers of the declaration went to the heart of the matter by accusing President Aquino no less:

“Far from preserving and defending the constitution, as he swore to do when he assumed office, the incumbent president Benigno Simeon Aquino III has subverted and violated it by corrupting the congress, intimidating the judiciary, taking over the treasury, manipulating the automated voting system, and perverting the constitutional impeachment process; 

“President Benigno Simeon Aquino III has also damaged the moral fabric of Philippine society by bribing members of congress not only to impeach and remove a sitting supreme court chief justice but also to enact a law which disrespects the right to life of human beings at the earliest and most vulnerable stages of their lives, in defiance not only of the constitution but above all of the law, the customs, culture, and conscience of Filipinos.”

Logically exploding the bombshell, the signatories said:

“Therefore, faithful to the objective moral law and to the universally honored constitutional principle that sovereignty resides in the people and all government authority emanates from them, we declare that president Benigno Simeon Aquino III has lost the moral right to lead the nation, and has become a danger to the Philippine democratic and republican state and to the
peace, freedom, security and moral and spiritual well-being of the Filipino people.

“We further declare that we have lost all trust and confidence in President Benigno Simeon Aquino III, and we call upon him to immediately relinquish his position.”

Then they talked about the National Transformation Council. What is this? What are its functions? Most certainly there was no talk here of one single personality being groomed to replace the erring President; no talk of politicians and political parties; and yet the subject matter was unquestionably political.

The National Transformation Council is that which must:

“Assume the urgent and necessary task of restoring our damaged political institutions to their original status and form before we begin to consider electing a new government under normal political conditions. The role of the council will not be to succeed President Aquino, but
solely to prevent the total destruction of our political system, and to rebuild and nourish its institutions back to health so that all those interested could join the political competition later, without the dice being loaded in anyone’s favor."

“Like a crew whose task is to put everything in order before a commercial carrier, which had earlier developed some problems in midair, is cleared again for take-off, the council’s duty will be only to repair the battered tripartite system [legislative-executive-judicial] and to
make sure that the people are once again able to freely and intelligently elect their own leaders.”

The signatories therefore declared that the Council should:

“Open broad public consultations on the need either to modify or strengthen the presidential system or to shift from the unitary/presidential system to a federal/parliamentary system--endowing such structure with:

1) A totally independent judicial department, free from any kind of intimidation or bullying by either the executive or the legislative department, and with the sufficient wherewithal to clear the backlog of the courts and fast-track all cases;

2) A merit-driven, professional civil and military service;

3) Totally transparent government budgeting, procurement, disbursement, accounting and auditing systems and procedures; and

4) An irreproachably independent and completely dependable electoral system, free from the virus that has corrupted the automated voting system since 2010.

“Whatever the final form of government the citizenry decide to adopt, absolutely indispensable are the integrity and independence of the courts, and the existence of an incorrupt electoral system by means of which we, the people, are able to freely and intelligently choose our own leaders in free and honest elections. Without these we cannot speak of a normally functioning
democratic and republican government.”

There was no doubt among those present regarding the deceitful and fraudulent character of the 2010 and 2013 elections due to the “hocus-PCOS” electoral cheating machines. A presentation by a CPA-Lawyer of the abundant evidence in this regard refreshed everyone’s memory of so much they had been fighting against the past few years.

Hence, they emphasized that:

“Whatever the final form of government the citizenry decide to adopt, absolutely indispensable are the integrity and independence of the courts, and the existence of an incorrupt electoral system by means of which we, the people, are able to freely and intelligently choose our own leaders in free and honest elections. Without these we cannot speak of a normally functioning democratic and republican government.

“Thus we fully support the council’s position that until we have such a fraud-free electoral system, we should refrain from holding any farcical election. But once we have it, we should encourage the best qualified men and women in the country to participate in the open electoral process so that together we could put an end to the stranglehold exercised by the corrupt and incompetent political dynasties upon our elections.”

Then, of course, the transformation they sought was not merely one-dimensional but total; not merely political but, as well, socio-economic and religious-cultural. They were committed both to working on personal conversion and achieving social transformation:

“With political reform there must go hand in hand comprehensive economic reform. With one strong voice, we must now say a vigorous “no,” as Pope Francis has suggested, to an economics of exclusion and inequality, coming from a misguided vision of the human being and of society harmfully acted upon through myopic laws, policies and programs.”

Clearly, then, the National Transformation Council--a revolutionary council initiated by the moral leaders of this country in response to a moral crisis whose effects if not stanched in time would certainly lead to national destruction--is an effort of a non-violent nature, neither illegal nor unconstitutional in character but creatively restorative of a severely damaged constitutional order abetted by an administration chemically clean of any sincere regard for the rule of law.

It is a time of trouble; it is also a time of great opportunity for genuine reform. The movement for national transformation must be protected, defended, warmly welcomed and fostered.

“As the council prepares to embark upon the necessary reforms, we call upon the armed forces of the Philippines, as the constitutional ‘protector of the people and the state,’ to extend its protective shield to the council, and not to allow itself to be used in any manner to undermine the council’s purely transitional and nonpartisan role, nor to allow any armed group to sow violence, disorder or discord into its peaceful ranks.

“Adopted in Lipa City, this 27th day of August A.D. 2014/2nd day of Dhu Alqa’da
A.H.1435.”

Is this the beginning of the end for an administration that has habitually made short shrift of the Constitution and the rule of law, that gloried in high economic growth for the benefit of a very few at the expense of the very many, that corrupted Congress, intimidated the judiciary, took over the treasury, manipulated the automated voting system, and perverted the Constitutional impeachment process? 

Or will all this merely lead to an iron-fisted response from the state? Unquestionably, however, in the end weeks or months from now the only relevant question is: how did the rest of the populace respond? Would they merely say, “Don’t bother us, we’re okay!” or would they not rather ask their moral leaders, “What can we do together?”

Cardinal Vidal's address, 2nd National Transformation Council Assembly

Cardinal Ricardo Vidal’s Address
Second National Transformation Council Assembly
Cebu City, Oct. 1, 2014

My dear good people of God, brothers and sisters in Christ, friends:

This is the second grand assembly of the National Transformation Council since it was founded here in Cebu City, without any publicity, three years ago. The first assembly was held in Lipa, Batangas, on the 27th of August this year. This came out with “The Lipa Declaration: An Urgent Call for National Transformation.” We were honored to have been hosted in that Assembly by the Archbishop of Lipa, the Most Reverend Ramon Arguelles, D. D., who has in turn honored us with his presence here today.

Our esteemed Archbishop of Cebu Jose Palma is still on official mission in Rome, and therefore unable to join our assembly today. But Archbishop Palma has sent his message welcoming us in Cebu.

I personally thank our good Archbishop, and I am sure all of you will join me in thanking him, for his kindness and his warm hospitality. Although he cannot be here with us physically, we can count on his prayers, and the prayers of all our friends here, for the success of our proceedings. Thank you very much indeed.

Nothing less than the total transformation of our country is needed at this point in our history. And this is a task that is addressed not just to the National Transformation Council but to all of us. Now, transformation necessarily assumes changing every aspect of our national life, including our politics.

Priests are not politicians, and in Gaudium et Spes, the Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World, the Second Vatican Council teaches us that “the Church, by reason of her role and competence, is not identified in any way with the political community nor bound to any specific political system, nor does she claim competence in proposing solutions to concrete political and economic problems. The Church and the political community in their own fields are autonomous and independent of each other. Yet both, under different titles, are devoted to the personal and social vocation of the same human person. The more both foster sounder cooperation in mutual respect and with due consideration for the circumstances of time and place, the more effective will their service be exercised for the good of all”.

The Church has the right and the duty, and should have the unimpeded freedom, to teach her doctrine and to pass moral judgment in those matters which regard the common good and fundamental rights and freedoms. What is to be avoided is any kind of partisanship that would tend to distort the pastoral character of the Church’s action.

Necessarily, any effort to strengthen the nation’s moral and spiritual foundation and character will have concrete political manifestations and consequences. This is not because the source of the moral or spiritual intervention desires to get involved in politics, but only because the moral issue/s involved have political consequences and manifestations. The issues go far beyond the politics, and deep into the moral and spiritual foundation of the nation. At no time does this moral intervention violate the principle of separation of Church and State.

The political dysfunctions we are witnessing today are mere symptoms of a more profound moral and spiritual crisis. Our task, and the task of the National Transformation Council is to address not merely these symptoms but the roots of the crisis. Thus, although priests and pastors should not get involved in partisan politics, they must launch into the deep and help resolve the moral crisis and all its political manifestations and consequences. Moreover, churchmen are also citizens, and there should be no conflict between their rights and duties as churchmen and their rights and duties as citizens of the Republic.

In Lipa, the Assembly declared that far from preserving and defending the Constitution, as he swore to do when he assumed office, the incumbent President has subverted and violated it by corrupting the Congress, intimidating the Judiciary, taking over the Treasury, manipulating the automated voting system, and perverting the constitutional impeachment process. He has thereby damaged the moral fabric of the society, and has therefore lost the moral right to lead the nation.

The Assembly called upon the incumbent to relinquish his position now.

These are very strong words, which the Lipa Declaration has submitted to our people for their careful consideration. I hope and pray that in this Assembly, here in Cebu, the National Transformation Council will have the opportunity to further amplify this issue. May the wisdom of the Almighty God guide this Assembly in its deliberations and in crafting the appropriate Declaration that will issue from these proceedings. Thank you and good afternoon.