Lay people join signature drive for Gov. Panlilio
Pampanga Gov. Ed "Among" Panlilio yesterday gathered support from the participants of the 2008 National Laity Week in his fight against corruption in the government.
The around 500 participants, mostly lay people from the different archdioceses and dioceses and religious associations in the Philippines, issued a statement of support for the priest turned governor.
The statement of support was read by Archbishop Gabriel Reyes, DD of the archdiocese of Aklan. It manifested their support and encouragement to Gov. Panlilio in his endeavor to promote integrity and honesty in the government. The archbishop made it clear they are not "partisan" but they want to promote Christian values. A copy of the statement of support will be sent to Archbishop Aniceto of Pampanga.
The statement of support is also in relation to this year's theme of the National Laity Week which is "The Laity: Primary Agents of Change Towards Honesty and Integrity for Good Governance." The statement of support was signed by Archbishop Reyes of the archdiocese of Aklan, Linda Tacorda, national president of LAIKO and Aurora Santiago, LAIKO secretary in behalf of the entire participants.
Gov. Panlilio, who spoke before the participants on Monday, asked for their support in the midst of recall and recount moves initiated by his political opponents in Pampanga.
The manifesto of support from the laity adds to the number of people and groups expressing support to the governor.
Earlier, 69 bishops also signed a manifesto of support for the governor believing in his bid for good governance. The governor earned the support of the participants after hearing his testimonies on his life in Pampanga. He won against his moneyed opponent by critical mass.
"The people already want change in running the government affairs," Panlilio noted.
Panlilio said Pampanga already has the quarry lord and the gambling lord and he wants to change it to "Praise the Lord." Though, he admitted that he is not one of the first set of people groomed by groups that want changes in Pampanga.
The statement of support for Panlilio will counter the 175,000 signatures gathered by his opponents. Only 98,000 signatures are needed to depose Panlilio. The governor believes recall could not be immediately initiated since it needs a "tedious process" on the authentication of the signatures.