From: Ouko joachim omolo
The News Dispatch with Omolo Beste in images
TUESDAY, JANUARY 29, 2013
Since Pope Benedict XVI accepted the resignation of Caloocan Bishop Deogracias Iñiguez, one of the figures in the Philippine Church hierarchy known for openly voicing their opinions on various political issues, a lot of speculations have been going around.
The information relayed to the media office of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) on Friday by the Apostolic Nuncio to the Philippines, Archbishop Guiseppe Pinto does not say the reason.
The information only stated that the 72-year-old Iñiguez, who is chair of the CBCP Public Affairs Committee, resigned before the mandated retirement age of 75. The Vatican stated that it was made under Canon 401, par. 2 of the Code of Canon Law. The provision of the law states that a diocesan bishop who becomes “unsuited for duties due to illness or other grave reason is requested to tender his resignation from office.
Bishop Iñiguez is remembered for his move to file impeachment case against former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in 2006, a move that was sharply refused by the Roman Catholic bishops’ conference.
It could be argued that the bishops’ refusal to join calls for the resignation of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo was the result of an admonition by the Vatican, which told them to stop meddling in politics.
As New York Times reports the Vatican’s reprimand, which stopped the bishops from asking Arroyo to resign, was first reported by the Manila newsmagazine Newsbreak and was independently confirmed by several bishops, who declined to be named because of the secretive nature of their deliberations.
The Vatican has long been uncomfortable about the partisanship of the church in the Philippines but tolerated it nonetheless because of the seriousness of the political problems being faced by Filipinos, such as the dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos.
Iñiguez is not the first bishop to be critical against the sitting president. The late Cardinal Jaime Sin used his high-profile to involve in the campaigns against Marcos and President Joseph Estrada, who were toppled in church-supported uprisings in 1981 and 2001. Sin had been close to the late Pope John Paul II.
Bishop Deogracias Iñiguez is one of those clericals who are critical of Arroyo and has always defended the church’s involvement in politics. “It can be taken and viewed in different ways, but the bishops are always called to guide the people,” he said. “It is our obligation to give proper moral guidance to the people.”
Iñiguez explained that during crises like this “when political matters are heightened, moral concerns always crop up.” “So the bishops will have to speak out and guide the people,” he maintained.
Iñiguez has insisted that in the context of the Philippines, political activism by church people “may be called for,” pointing out that a bishop is also a citizen, saying Filipino bishops can always listen to the Vatican but they should not be prevented from forming their own minds about political matters.
Bishop Deogracias Iñiguez again found himself into bigger problem in 2011 when he conceded that seven Catholic bishops received luxury vehicles from the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) and cash amounting to P8.3 million under the term of former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.
This was despite the fact that article 6 Section 29 of the Constitution bans charity on churches and clergy. Section 29 (2) states that no public money or property shall be appropriated, applied, paid, or employed, directly or indirectly, for the use, benefit, or support of any sect, church, denomination, sectarian institution, or system of religion, or of any priest, preacher, minister, or other religious teacher, or dignitary as such, except when such priest, preacher, minister, or dignitary is assigned to the armed forces, or to any penal institution, or government orphanage or leprosarium.
Mrs Arroyo came to power in January 2001 after Mr Estrada was thrown out for graft in what was seen as a military-backed coup led by the Church.
Iñiguez was the first bishop of Caloocan and had served the diocese since August 2003. A native of Cotabato City, he was ordained in 1963. He served as Auxiliary Bishop of Malolos from 1985 to 1989 and as bishop of Iba, Zambales, from 1990 to 2003.
As an official of the CBCP, Iñiguez had been giving his voice to many social and political issues including the reproductive health law and land reform. He was also a steadfast advocate on environmental issues.
Aside from Iñiguez, San Pablo Bishop Leo Drona also resigned, which the Pope has also approved on Friday. Current Gumaca Bishop Buenaventura Famadico was appointed as Drona’s successor.
Drona, 71, was ordained a priest in December 1967 in Rome and was appointed bishop of San Jose, Nueva Ecija, in July 1987. He served there until 2004 when he was transferred to San Pablo City.
As the new bishop of San Pablo, Famadico, who is a member of the CBCP Episcopal Commission on Family and Life, will serve more than two million Catholics in the diocese.
Fr Joachim Omolo Ouko, AJ
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Real change must come from ordinary people who refuse to be taken hostage by the weapons of politicians in the face of inequality, racism and oppression, but march together towards a clear and unambiguous goal.
-Anne Montgomery, RSCJ UN Disarmament Conference, 2002