Pasig Bishop Mylo Hubert Vergara urges the faithful to vote candidates who espouse the good of the people during his homily in a Mass on May 1, at the Pasig Catholic College Grounds for the 'Bike for CHAMP' activity of the diocese — an advocacy to have a Clean, Honest, Accountable, Meaningful and Peaceful May 2013 elections. (Pio Antonio Bellen/CBCPNews)
MANILA, May 2, 2013—With almost a week and a half before the May 13 elections, a Catholic prelate reminded his flock to exercise their right to vote by following the advocacy “I Choose God, I Vote Good.”
Pasig Bishop Mylo Hubert Vergara in his homily during the “Bike for CHAMP” activity of the diocese yesterday stressed that voting wisely for this coming elections is a good opportunity to help the country and fellow Filipino people achieve a Clean, Honest, Accountable, Meaningful, and Peaceful (CHAMP) elections.
“Our sacred right to vote demands that we elect public servants either on the national or in the local levels—people who choose God as their core principle in whatever they do, will vote for the common good and the benefit of the Filipino people [instead of their self interest],” Vergara said.
The prelate also discussed the meaning of the acronym GOD and GOOD in choosing the right candidates.
“For I choose GOD, G for God-fearing candidates who are pro-life, pro-family, and pro-marriage, while O for candidates who can Offer their time and talents for the needy, and D for the Duty- bound candidates who can protect the integrity of the creations of God and be their guardians against illegal doings,” the bishop explained.
“For I vote GOOD, G for candidates who Governs with transparency, O who Opposes graft and corruption, second O who Organizes their campaigns with integrity and fairness and D for a candidate who Desires for what is best for our nation,” Vergara added.
“Our democratic society calls for new forms of participation on public life by Christian and non-Christian who can contribute by voting in election for local officials and in other ways as well to the development of political solutions in legislative choices which in their opinions can contribute for the common good,” Vergara furthered.
Organized by the local Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV) of the diocese, the event held at the Pasig Catholic College on May 1, 2013, was participated by 500 bikers from the cities of Pasig and Taguig and the municipality of Pateros.
Aside from Catholic faithful who joined the activity, members of other religions, such as Muslims and Protestants also attended the events. (Jandel Posion/Czarina Chavez)
