Bishop: US trip shows administration’s moral bankruptcy06/24/2008 | 06:24 AM
MANILA, Philippines - The decision of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo to continue with her 10-day trip abroad amid the devastation storm "Frank" has caused shows her administration's moral bankruptcy, a Catholic bishop said.
Lingayen-Dagupan archbishop Oscar Cruz said, "As the people of the Philippines sink in water and mud, their supposedly national leader flies high in Cloud 9. As houses are destroyed and streets are flooded, someone is enjoying sky service with class on board, and anticipating royal reception abroad. As more and more Filipinos wallow in poverty and misery, there are certain few much favored and very loyal individuals who bask in luxurious presidential junket—courtesy of the inevitable expanded value-added tax (EVAT) payments made even by poor children, jobless persons and sick elderly."
Bishop Cruz’s lamentations were posted on his web blog.
On Sunday, press secretary and presidential spokesman Jesus Dureza said the destruction caused by "Frank" to Metro Manila was not enough reason for Mrs. Arroyo to cut short her trip.
Dureza said Arroyo can always be updated through video-conference meetings with the National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC).
"To the morally callous and bankrupt, what is right or wrong, what is good or evil - all these are irrelevant. What matters instead is bloated ego-trips plus the feeling of infallibility and unending supremacy,"
Cruz said.
Cruz, a vocal critic of the Arroyo government, noted that there is no urgent reason for Arroyo to go on a foreign visit, particularly to the United States.
Cruz noted that the visit could be another attempt to woo back the support of the US, especially against possible destabilization.
"That is why it will need US backing for it to stay in power—even after that ominous year (2010). That is why it is giving a visit not only to the incumbent USA President but to anyone else who could be one come 2010 and hereafter. Is this the why behind the expensive trip?" he added. - GMANews.TV
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