[Press Release] March, Mass, Prayer Rally against the Pork Barrel System Set for Sept. 29 -Cebu Coalition Against the Pork Barrel System

March, Mass, Prayer Rally against the Pork Barrel System Set for September 29, 2013 Group offers potential alternatives The Cebu Coalition Against the Pork Barrel System urges Cebuanos to join a massive interfaith rally on Sunday, September 29, 2013. Participants will assemble at the Fuente Osmeña circle at 1:00 PM, followed by a march down…

Human Rights Online Philippines

September 29, 2013

4–6 minutes

Cebu, Cebu City, Cebu Doctors University, interfaith prayer, Philippine, Plaza Independencia, prayer rally, unity statement, University of San Carlos, University of the Visayas

March, Mass, Prayer Rally against the Pork Barrel System
Set for September 29, 2013

Group offers potential alternatives

The Cebu Coalition Against the Pork Barrel System urges Cebuanos to join a massive interfaith rally on Sunday, September 29, 2013. Participants will assemble at the Fuente Osmeña circle at 1:00 PM, followed by a march down Osmeña Blvd. toward Plaza Independencia where a Mass will be concelebrated.

After the Mass, an Interfaith Prayer and Anti-Pork Barrel Program will ensue. Over 50 religious, civil society, academic, and business organizations have coalesced to form this protest event against the “pork barrel system”.

Heads of Cebu schools such as University of Cebu, Cebu Doctors University, University of San Carlos, University of the Visayas, St. Theresa’s College, and other Catholic schools will encourage their students and faculty to join the September 29 protest activities.

The rally will include leaders of different faiths praying for the well-being of the country by getting rid of the pork barrel system, patronage politics and corruption in general.

Several individuals from various sectors of society will speak up and share with others how the pork barrel scam has negatively affected their lives. Guest performers such as Budoy and the Sining Dilaab Tribal Progressive Band will entertain the crowd with their “pork barrel related” numbers. In addition, Ingko Alisyon (in coalition), will help inform and regale the crowd with very educational, yet simple parables and make this complex national tragedy much easier to understand.

The program also includes the reading of the Unity Statement in English and Cebuano, signing of the statement throughout the event, and a special candle lighting called “Ten Thousand Points of Light”.

If there is one thing that differentiates this rally among others locally or nationally, it is that a major focus of this event includes proposing potential alternatives or solutions to the pork barrel. These options will be introduced to the crowd and their collective response noted.

Right after the rally in the beginning of October, the Coalition has planned two educational fora highlighting constitutional and governance experts who will serve as resources regarding the potential solutions that had introduced to the participants. In fact, on September 25, 2013, the Movement for a Livable Cebu, a member of the Coalition conducted an education forum with Justice Gabriel Ingles on “The General Appropriations Act”. Following these educational sessions, core members of the Coalition will engage in a two day retreat (Oct. 5 & 6) to further work on the specific proposals for alternatives and solutions.

Msgr. Rommel Kintanar of the Archdiocesan Discernment Group of Cebu and Co-Convenor, stated, “We will not only say why we are against the pork barrel system, we will explain fully what we have stated in our Unity Statement, and most importantly, we will float some of our potential solutions and alternatives.”

Msgr. Kintanar added, “We appeal to people with good hearts and clean conscience, especially Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) beneficiaries who would be painfully affected by PDAF abolition: May they understand the gravity and urgency of this radical solution. May they bear and see this temporary sacrifice as the birth pangs for the emergence of a better way of managing government resources and of improving the delivery of government services.”

The sense of transformation is vividly present within the group. There is an impatience with the way politics has been conducted in the country and how such politics has caused so much suffering for people especially the marginalized. Marc Canton, of the Movement for a Livable Cebu and Coalition Co-Convenor, lamented, “We ache for a country where we count the number of Nobel Prize winners and Magsaysay Awardees, as opposed to how many plunderers have been convicted and put in jail”.

Cebu Coalition Against the Pork Barrel System

CONVENORS

Archdiocese of Cebu Discernment Group

Association of Major Religious Men Superiors of Cebu

Association of Women Religious of Cebu

Basilica del Sto. Nino SNAF

Catholic Women’s League

Cebu-Citizens Involvement and Maturation in People’s Empowerment and Liberation Foundation Inc. (C-CIMPEL)

Confraternity of the Lady of All Nations

Couples for Christ

Dilaab

Jesus is Lord Movement

Peace, Inc.

Redemptorist Center for Social and Ecological Concerns

Task Force for Life and Family

Task Force on Urban Concientization-AMRSP Cebu

Abante Barangay

Abolish Pork Barrel Movement-Cebu

Akbayan

Anakbayan-Cebu

Barangay Luz Urban Poor

Bayan-Central Visayas

Bosconian International Chamber of Commerce

Boy Scouts Cebu Council

Cebu City Federation of PWD

Cebu Medical Society

Farmers Development Center

Fuente Ta!

Integrated Bar of the Philippines-Cebu

Jesus A. Avila Foundation Inc

Kabataan Partylist

Kahupayan Center

Kasama sa UP

KOGOS

League of Filipino Students

Magdalo Sugbo Chapter

Maghisgot Kita’g Politika Bay

Movement for a Livable Cebu

Nagkahiusang Kusog sa Estudyante

National Union of Students of the Philippines

Oasis of Love

Organization of Rehabilitative Advocates for Inclusion Inc

Pagbabago Cebu

Panaghugpong sa Kabos nga Tagadakbayan

Philippine Institute of Applied Politics

Philippine Nurses Association

Ramon Aboitiz Foundation

Sanlakas-Sugbo

UP Cebu Student Council

University of Cebu

T. Padilla Urban Poor

USC Community Extension/ Student Council

USC Political Science Center for Governance

Media Contact: Rudy Alix (0915 537 5613)

Convenors: Msgr. Rommel Kintanar (272-8091); Marc Canton (0923 925 9723); Marilu Chiongbian (412-1322)

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