Bishop Galido's Perspective on Election 2010

CBCP Perpective on Election
Most Rev. Elenito D. Galido, D.D.

I start with the scriptural text and encyclical letter of PJP II that is often quoted in the pastoral exhortation of the bishop especially on the issue of election.
Deut. 1, 13 “Chose wise, discerning and experienced people.” Maalamon, may katakus, may kasinatian.
Centesimus Annus, 46, “The Church values the democratic system.” PJP II. These words of PJP II inspire this letter, which we, your shepherds, write to you as the national election draw near. We seek only one thing: to apply the values of the Gospel to our electoral process.
CBCP Pastoral exhortation letters on election: a few I selected from the many exhortations that had been written on this issue.
1. Pastoral letter on preparing for the 1992 election.
Indispensable requirements to be met in the coming election are the following;
a. Wise and informed electorate. Reject the harmful typical politics of pay-offs, patronage and personalities. Buying and selling votes is always wrong.
b. The existence of conditions that will enable voters to choose freely. Freedom of choice is under- mined by corruption, fraud, force and intimidation.
c. Organizing people down to the precinct level to combat the age-old practices calculated to falsify the expressed wishes of the people and to attain victory at any cost.
2. Pastoral exhortation dated April 9, 1995. A call to Christian Participation in the Election. This exhortation begins with this plea to the people of God in the Philippines. The bishops wrote;
Dear People of God in the Philippines,
“..Politics, like all human activities, must be exercised always in the light of the faith of the gospel.. (PCP II, Conciliar Document, 344)
“Lay men and women in responsible positions in our society must help form the civic conscience of the voting population and work to explicitly promote the election to public office of leaders of true integrity,” (PCP II, Decress, Art 28 #1)
The bishops made it clear saying, “As a body we do not endorse any particular party or candidate. We do not want to dictate to you whom you should vote for. We respect your freedom in voting. This freedom is part of the exercise of your freedom of conscience which we, your pastors, are obliged to respect.
We urge you, candidates and your followers, to act in a manner befitting Christian men and women, and believers in the one true God.
We ask you, voters, to exercise and not to set aside your Christian faith when you cast your
Votes.
The bishops also clearly outline their petition to ensure a clean, honest, peaceful and meaningful election. They addressed this to the candidates, the voters, and the Comelec.
To the candidates, their parties and followers; 1) Stop violence, 2) Do not cheat, 3) Do not buy votes, 4) Do not trivialize the campaign period, 5) Do not tell lies to destroy the good name of another person.
To the voters. We ask; 1) Vote intelligently, 2) Do not sell your votes, 3) Beware of those who overspend during elections, 4) Do not allow yourself to be cowed. There are no tryrants where there is no cowards.
To the Comelec and their deputies; 1) Do your work with impartiality. You are not hirelings of persons who appointed you. It is to the people you owe loyalty and to the appointing powers. 2) Do your works with competence, 3) Do your work with honesty, 4) Do your work credibly, 5) Expose and neutralize all private armed groups.
Credible elections will make for a credible government. Meaningful elections will make for good government. The kind of government we have tell the kind of people we are. The kind of people we are, will determine the kind of government we shall have.
We wish to encourage persons, organizations and movements that have been working to assure for us this kind of elections. We commend the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPC-RV), VOTECARE, NAMFREL and similar groups. They are rendering selfless and oftentimes heroic service to God and country.
Do not be afraid! Let us face the future with hope, and take every necessary step to assure clean, honest, accurate, meaningful, peaceful (CHAMP) election.
3. Pastoral statement on the coming 2004 elections.
The bishops pointed again the anomalies of the previous elections. They said that our electoral process is poisoned by a climate of confusion, cynicism, and loss of credibility. “More than ever, political patronage, pay-offs and personalities dominate our electoral process, not principles, party platforms and genuine people’s participation. What are the challenges that we are facing up; 1) the challenge to uphold the constitutional process and rule of law. Clean, honest, and orderly elections are the hallmarks of a working democracy. 2) We have to work together. Multi-sectoral grouping, interfaith groupings of concerned citizens must be involved in political education, scrutiny of candidates’ qualifications, and poll-watching. In particular, we reiterate the call to the Catholic laity to exercise their Christian responsibility and noble calling to be involved in politics through education in social responsibility, non-partisan poll-watching, in the conscientious choices of candidates. 3) We have to believe in our own power to transform society. We start with our own values and attitudes. In a Church of the Poor, it is the poor who must take the lead in transforming our society. We must realized that this transformed society requires leaders to be public servants, not providers of favors.
4. And lastly, I want to refer to the recent pastoral exhortation entitled, RENEWING OUR PUBLIC LIFE THROUGH MORAL VALUES, (29 January 2006). We discerned that the root of our crisis is the erosion of moral values. The Bishops articulate it saying, “We realize that the root cause of our debilitating situation is the erosion of moral values. Its external manifestations are deceit and dishonesty, corruption, manipulation and a deadening preoccupation with narrow political interests, perceived in practically all branches and at all levels of government. The bishops reiterated their strong affirmation, encouragement, appreciation and support coming from dedicated laity, religious and clergy, NGOs and various associations, including police and military personnel, giving themselves to improve the governance, education, health, housing, livelihodd and environmental conditions of our people. These people, united by a vision of heroic citizenship, are reasons for hope, even in the midst of the political crisis we find ourselves in.
The bishop’s in this exhortation would like us to address the issues confronting us from the
following moral point; 1) The search for truth should be relentlessly pursued through structures and processes mandated by law and our Constitution, (Omsbudsman, Commission on Audit, the Commission on Human right, the Sandiganbayan, and Congress itself as will as other citizens groups. This requires that such bodies be led and run by credible people, persons of integrity and probity. 2) Confidence and trust in our political processes have to be restored. We strongly urge our political leaders to undertake electoral reforms. Comelec has to be transformed into a competent and reliable body beyond reproach. 3) The Church recognizes that in a democracy power emanates from the people –“the subject of political authority is the people considered in its entirety.. This people transfers the exercise of sovereignty to those whom it freely elects... but it preserves the prerogative of evaluating those charged with governing, and in replacing them when they do not fulfil their functions satisfactorily.” (Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church, no. 395). 4) We do not condone resort to violence or counter-constitutional means in resolving our present crisis. These measures would only bring about new forms of injustice, more hardships, and greater harm in the future. 5) We have to seriously accompany our efforts with prayer and penance and deep trust in the transformative power of God’s grace in the lives of individuals as well as of societies.
There are many more CBCP exhoratations on politics, particularly on the issue of election. These are the only few that I presented to put us on the perspective that we have to take again on the next election. For sure, the bishops on the coming July 2009 plenary assembly will craft again a statement on the preparation of the 2010 elections. I believe that the points presented will again be reviewed, discussed, deliberated and rearticulated.
There is only one thing we seek: to apply the values of the Gospel to our electoral process. Let’s be more serious for the coming hard but challenging task for a clean, honest, meaningful, orderly and peaceful election 2010.