“Communal action” in action? Militants throw rotten tomatoes at Arroyo picture in picket outside Batasan.
CBCP call prompts
rally against ‘evil’
Feb. 29 protest likely to lead to ‘resign’ call
BY GERARD NAVAL
CIVIL society groups are organizing
an inter-faith rally in response to the call of the
Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines for what
has been designated as "communal action for truth,
justice and accountability."
The prayer rally, scheduled Friday
next week at the Luneta Park, could lead to calls for
President Arroyo’s resignation, Lingayen-Dagupan
Archbishop Oscar Cruz said yesterday.
"It is a communal action and I think
it will lead to ‘Gloria resign.’ Where else will it go?
Gloria please remain?" said Cruz, former CBCP president.
IN a thinly veiled threat, Speaker
Prospero Nog-rales yesterday floated the idea of revoking
all the tax privileges of the Catholic Church and all
religious institutions that engage in politics, following
the call of the Catholic Bishop’s Conference of the
Philippines for a "new brand of people power."
"In other countries like America, I am
informed that once the Church enters the political arena,
it is stripped of its tax privileges but here in the
Philippines, this is not the case. Maybe it’s worth
studying by our political scientists," said Nograles.
The Church, its lands, and the
institutions under its auspices such as schools and
broadcast stations are tax-free.
Opposition, militants set ‘coordinated’ protests to mark Edsa 1
BY ASHZEL HACHERO
THE United Opposition yesterday said it would
offer a thanksgiving mass at the Ninoy Aquino monument in Makati
City on Monday, the 22nd anniversary of the 1986 Edsa
Revolution.
Various militant organizations are also
planning "nationally coordinated" protest actions on Monday.
They will not be allowed to use any portion
of the 24-kilometer Edsa for their activities, according to the
Metro Manila Development Authority, but they may use the People
Power Monument in the White plains area, said MMDA chairman
Bayani Fernando.
