20 pro-life solons cited

CEBU — Cebu first district Rep. Jose Gullas led the list of 20 congressmen awarded by the Human Life International spearheaded by Cebu Archbishop Ricardo Cardinal Vidal for fighting for the sanctity of marriage and human life through their respective bills in the 11th and 12th Congresses.

Cardinal Vidal, in his speech during the awarding ceremonies the other day, said "life as such" and "such a life" have always been the suprema lex or supreme law that any church and every State should uphold.

"The people’s lives and their states of life and their lifestyle should deserve the primary attention and affection of their representatives," he said.

Saying that more people means more poor, he said, is absolutely false.

"Remember when we, Filipinos were few, we were poor and now that we are many, we are still poor. Something must be wrong somewhere. That something wrong is greed, the root cause of our socio-economic-political problems," he said.

Besides Gullas, four other Cebu congressmen were cited, namely Reps. Simeon Kintanar (second district), Antonio Yapha (third district), Antonio Cuenco (Cebu City south district) and Raul del Mar (Cebu City north district).

The other awardees were Bohol Reps. Edgar Chatto (first district), Roberto Cajes (second district), and Eladio Jala (third district); Constantino Jaraula (lone district of Cagayan de Oro), Abraham Kahlil Mitra (third district of Palawan), Enrique Garcia (second district of Bataan),Monico Puentebella (lone district of Bacolod), Rolando Andaya Jr. (first district of Camarines Sur), Raul Gonzales (lone district of Iloilo), Narciso Monfort (fourth district of Iloilo), Edmundo Reyes Jr. (lone district of Marinduque), Garry Salapuddin (lone district of Basilan) and Rosellor Barinaga (second district of Zamboanga del Norte).

Party-list Reps. Emerito Calderon of Cocofed and Christian Sineres of Buhay were also cited. — Freeman News Service