Bacolod Bishop Patricio Buzon, San Carlos Bishop Gerardo Alminaza and Kabankalan Bishop Louie Galbines (l-r)*
Three Negros bishops have joined the call to end corruption in government.
Bacolod Bishop Patricio Buzon in his homily on Sunday, Sept. 21, said “the people are rising in anger. The Church is one with them and shares their hurt, frustration and indignation. She cannot remain silent for the Lord himself rejects worship divorced from justice”.
“In fact, God is enraged with injustice and sides with the victim,“ he said.
“From the current investigations we learn how politicians, government officials, contractors and their cohorts pillage the people’s money, leaving them impoverished, deprived of the basic services and utterly vulnerable to floods and their perils,” Buzon said.
And the cruel irony is that some of the suspects are sitting as investigators, turning Congress into a circus and a kangaroo court, he said.
Kabankalan Bishop Louie Galbines, in a circular issued earlier, said “Corruption is not merely a political issue – it is a profound spiritual and moral crisis. At its core, corruption is the foul fruit of greed, an embodiment of one of the seven capital sins”.
“When public officials divert funds for personal enrichment, they violate the Eighth Commandment: ‘Thou shall not steal’,” he said.
“This theft extends beyond money — it steals a child’s education, a patient’s healthcare, a farmer’s livelihood, and a family’s future. It robs hope from the poor and marginalized, who bear the heaviest burden of this sin”, he added.
Public officers and employees must, at all times, be accountable to the people, serve them with utmost responsibility, integrity, loyalty, and efficiency, act with patriotism and justice, and live modest, he said.
Galbines called for unwavering accountability, radical transparency, and systemic reform.
“The people have spoken loud and clear: end corruption, end impunity, demand justice, demand accountability —demand it now”, San Carlos Bishop Gerardo Alminaza said.*