Church to faithful: Go for moral, pro-environment bets

Candidates who live with moral principles, have special concern for the environment and are independent when it comes to issues involving national unity – this, in a nutshell, was the response of the Catholic Church to questions about who to vote for in the May 14 elections.

Homilies in Masses at churches of the Archdiocese of Manila centered on politics yesterday, with less than a month to go before election day, as priests read a pastoral letter by Manila Archbishop Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales issuing guidelines to the faithful for choosing the candidates for whom they will vote.

"We must choose the best possible leaders. They must love and fear God above all," Rosales said in his letter. "They must be guided by well-formed conscience and always sensitive to choice of what is good. They must live and serve consistently with moral principles. And they must be honest, non-violent and compassionate."

Rosales, who is concerned about the condition of the environment, also said voters should support leaders who have environmental platforms: "Let us vote for those who respect and protect the limited resources in nature and require others to do the same."

Rosales also believes it is necessary to vote for candidates who are not bound by personal or partisan interests, especially when national unity is necessary for the country to attain progress: "We need leaders who are ready to sacrifice personal, party or group interest for the sake of unity."

The cardinal, in the same letter, has also said the Church sees the May 14 elections as an opportunity for Filipinos to finally move forward and attain progress: "In the past, enormous sufferings resulted from political ambitions, maneuvers and group adventurism resulting in the country’s poor becoming even poorer."

He said voters can do their part by simply not selling or bartering their votes for favors or allowing themselves to be coerced to vote for certain candidates.

"Choosing and holding the leaders accountable to the governed is a critically important choice that must follow moral guidance," he added. "The sacredness of an election recalls to us that votes are not for sale or to be bartered with favors. Neither can a vote be cast under any form of coercion."

Rosales also encouraged the members of the Armed Forces, the youth and citizen volunteers help the Commission on Elections (Comelec) ensure that voting is peaceful and that votes are accurately counted and properly turned over to national canvassers.

"We are grateful to and we encourage the teachers, the men and women of the armed forces, the youth and volunteer citizens who help the task of Comelec in ensuring that votes are properly cast, accurately counted at the precincts, are authentically reported to the municipalities and cities, and forwarded safely and untampered to the Comelec provincial and national offices," he said.

"Election is a process of choosing leaders who, with the people, will seek the common good of all. Thus the Church encourages and supports the citizens in making political choices that guarantees to the governed the possibility of both electing and holding accountable those who govern them and of replacing them through peaceful means when appropriate. (Centesimus Annus, 46)," Rosales added.

In concluding his letter, Rosales asked Catholic priests in the archdiocese to lead the faithful in reflecting and praying for credible election results "because God may softly suggest in prayer that this time what the country needs are moral, humble and repentant trustworthy leaders who can lead and move the country closer to its vision."– With Jan Clarisse Retales