MANILA, Philippines – A year before the 2016 elections, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) warned Filipino voters against “spin doctors” paid to tarnish reputations. 

In a pastoral letter issued Friday, June 5, CBCP president Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Socrates Villegas said a voter shouldn’t “allow ‘demolition jobs’ to dissuade him from choosing a person who is truly fit for office.” 

Villegas said: “Reject the notoriously corrupt, but neither should one readily jump on the bandwagon of condemnation in the absence of incontrovertible evidence, for, these days, one’s reputation, so painstakingly built by sincerity and honesty over the years, can so easily be tarnished by the truly evil work of ‘spin doctors’ in the payroll of one or the other political aspirant!”

The CBCP, through Villegas, issued this statement almost 11 months before the May 2016 elections, when Filipinos will choose their next president. 

Villegas said the CBCP did this because observers have often complained that the Catholic Church’s voters’ education campaigns “come too late.” He said, “It is the reason for this letter, this early – so that it may never be again said that we spoke too late.” 

He also explained that voting is not only a political right but “is also a moral obligation.” 

“For the Christian, it is one of the most meaningful and effective means of contributing to the flourishing of the Kingdom of God, a kingdom of justice, peace, and love. And so while politicians plan and strategize, and, this early, find ways of circumventing the law against premature campaigning, the Church cannot be remiss in its obligation of forming the consciences of Catholic and Christian voters,” he said. 

The pastoral letter comes as politicians begin campaigning – and mudslinging – for the 2016 polls. (READ: Comelec: ‘Moral question’ hounds early campaigners)

‘Reject inexperienced candidates’

In the pastoral letter, Villegas also warned voters to reject inexperienced candidates. (READ: The Leader I Want: Charisma ‘not enough’) 

He said: “A person who aspires for high office but who, because of inexperience, will be totally dependent on advisers, is not the best possible candidate for national positions, but we should be willing to repose trust on those who, we are convinced, are capable of leading and of serving with probity, high above suspicion, and with skill, competence, and wisdom that comes from abiding faith.”  

“That a person is a firm believer, and that he or she practices her faith, should be a crucial consideration for the Catholic voter,” he added.

Villegas issued other reminders such as the following:

• “Vote for the right reasons” and not because one was bribed
• “End political dynasties”
• “Reject a government by patronage”
• “Ask the right questions” – for example, not whether a lawmaker has sponsored local projects, which is not his job, but whether he has actively joined congressional sessions

Speaking in a forum in April, Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle also stressed the need to vote according to one’s conscience. He said Filipino voters can learn this from the conclave that elected Pope Francis. 

In a video message aired in the same forum, Villegas reminded voters: “Your vote can bring heaven to the Philippines. Your vote can also bring hell to the Philippines. Your vote, with God, becomes God, and if your vote is good, you bring heaven here on earth.” – Rappler.com