Raul Jr.: Bishops, prominent persons are not above the law
Iloilo Representative Raul Gonzalez, Jr. echoed the statements issued by his father Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez, Sr. on the dispersal of the protest rally led by some Catholic bishops and the country's prominent persons like former Vice President Teofisto Guingona Friday last week.
The younger Gonzalez actually hit the bishops who joined the rally saying their act was “scandalous.”
Gonzalez was referring to bishops Antonio Tobias of Novaliches, Deogracias Iñigez of Caloocan and Julio Labayen of Infanta, Quezon.
The three bishops along with Guingona, former congressman Oscar Orbos, Senator Jamby Madrigal, Fr. Robert Reyes and Rep. Satur Ocampo were sprayed with water canons after they tried to proceed to Mendiola after their prayer rally in San Sebastian Church.
In yesterday’s interview with the Iloilo City Hall Press Corps, Gonzalez said the bishops should be upfront and honest in their intentions.
A prayer rally could be held in any place except in the no rally zone, the solon stressed. They were already given the permit to hold their prayer rally in San Sebastian and there was no reason for them to go near Mendiola Bridge, he said.
He said the bishops should not use the sacredness of the prayer as an excuse to advance their own motives.
Gonzalez stressed even the bishops are not above the law.
He said the Scriptures even warned the people of bad shepherds who mislead and scandalized their flock.
“It seems certain leaders of the church produce also the fruits of rancor and divisiveness. May the Lord save us from such people,” added the solon.
Gonzalez further said, the dispersal of the rallyists last October 15 was not a violation of the peoples’ rights to peaceful assembly and prayer. The dispersal was an enforcement of the laws that were violated by those rallyists, he said.
Gonzalez said the government can no longer countenance any group, no matter how small, that appropriates public roads for their own purposes to the detriment and inconvenience of everyone else.
Meanwhile, Gonzalez said the calibrated preemptive response (CPR) is dealing with anti-government rallies is not a prelude to martial lawas proclaimed by the opposition. It is the government’s response to maintain peace and order in certain areas.