God has given every person the gift of reason and understanding to make sound judgment and decisions. It is a gift bequeathed to humankind to advance their lot and pursue the progress of human society. Monsignor Aglipay has attested to this when he said that ‘we are born with the right to think freely and to express our thoughts according to the light of reason which God has endowed us… as long as we do not usurp the freedom of others and violate their rights’. Reason, however, is in no way to be selfishly used by anybody to appropriate undue profit for himself or herself.
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s admission of committing a ‘lapse in judgment’ by talking to a COMELEC official during the last elections comprises an act of impropriety that casts doubts on the legitimacy of her ascendancy to power. While President Arroyo asked for an apology and pleaded for forgiveness, we believe that the Filipino people deserve more than these. The people require her to step down from office as just penance for the transgression she has committed. A president whose mandate is being doubted and whose ascendancy to power are being questioned has no moral authority to govern. The Filipino people, above all, have the right to exercise their sovereign power over a president whom they no longer trust.
We join the people’s clamor for President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to resign from the presidency. In this time when our country is deeply embroiled in crisis, what we need is a president with unquestionable integrity and credibility, and whose competence to make rightful decisions can never be compromised with a ‘lapse in judgment’. The scripture warns us that a leader who can compromise sound judgment for personal gain cannot be trusted. ‘A ruler who lacks understanding is a cruel oppressor’ (Proverbs 28. 16).
We beseech the Almighty to give President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo the courage to face the consequences of her action, enough reason to make a judicious decision for the good of the Filipino people, and the goodness of heart to peacefully leave Malacanang.
Pro Deo et Patria,
+ THE MOST REVD GODOFREDO J. DAVID
Obispo Maximo
30th June 2005
City of Manila
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