Be pro-life, Cardinal Vidal tells Ping

CEBU CITY — Be pro-life.

Ricardo Cardinal Vidal, the highest leader of the Catholic Church in Central Visayas, gave this piece of advice yesterday to opposition candidate Sen. Panfilo "Ping" Lacson, who called on him in the course of a campaign sortie here.

The prelate told journalists that he and the senator and House Minority Leader Carlos Padilla, Lacson’s lone senatorial candidate, discussed the opposition candidate’s population control advocacy and his crusade against graft and corruption.

The senator and former Philippine National Police chief is pushing for a population management program that aims to limit new couples to only two children each through various methods such as the use of contraceptives. Such methods do not include abortion.

The Catholic Church frowns upon birth control programs and advocacies.

"I told him (Lacson) to be pro-life, otherwise..." Cardinal Vidal said in response to a question from the media, leaving his remark hanging.

When asked if his advice did not conflict with Lacson’s population control advocacy, the cardinal repeated his answer: "I told him to be pro-life, and he said he is pro-life and he should continue that attitude."

As for the senator’s crusade against graft and corruption, the prelate said, "I suggested that he should continue his campaign."

Sought for comment later, Lacson said he does not see a conflict between his birth control advocacy and the cardinal’s advice.

"Limiting your children to a number that you can feed and provide shelter and education is being pro-life," he said.

He said to him, one becomes anti-life if he bears too many children whom he cannot support.

"As far as abortion is concerned, I am definitely against it because that is illegal and against the rule of God," he added.

He chided his presidential rivals for having no population program or refusing to comment on the issue for fear of antagonizing the Catholic Church.

Lacson explained that part of the country’s economic troubles stems from its fast-growing population, which he said cannot be matched by economic growth.

During his 10-minute courtesy call on Cardinal Vidal, the senator said the two of them "relived old times."

"He was already here when I was Cebu Metrodiscom commander 13 years ago. We had a healthy working relationship and we shared ideas," he said.

After his call on the prelate, Lacson paid his last respects to a former policeman who worked under him when he was Metrodiscom chief and who was mayor of Indang town in Leyte until he was killed in an ambush here last week.

He said Mayor Roy Jumao-as was a good policeman. A son of the mayor was slain with him.

Lacson said the mayor’s family asked him to provide protection for two suspects and a witness since other suspects are still at large and could do them harm.

He added that he would ask Cebu police officers who served under him to protect the suspects and the witness and hunt down the brains behind the ambush-slaying of the mayor and his son who were renting a small apartment here.

Lacson and Padilla later called on Cebu Gov. Pablo Garcia, a former colleague of Padilla in the House of Representatives.