Here we go again.
Hours ago I published an Article about a 
Catholic Bishop Meddling in matters of the State over the free distribution of condoms.
This time, they’re at it again but it isn’t about condoms. It’s more serious than that.
Don’t believe in promises, Church tells voters.
The president of the influential Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines on Friday told voters not to believe the promises of candidates and to be more discerning in choosing the country’s next leaders.
And Manila Archbishop Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales exhorts,
In choosing leaders, the electorate should carefully study and match the traits of candidate with the needs and issues disabling the country today.
Fair enough. Sound advice but may I ask, how?
1. How does an ordinary citizen become competent in evaluating a character?
2. How does an ordinary citizen know what it takes to drive an Economy?
3. How does an ordinary citizen know what issues are causing the country to destabilize?
From those three questions, it can also be deduced that the fruit of Democracy for whatever it’s worth, it is is self fulfilling.
I shall hypothesize with the use of an analogy.
A parent advises his child…
“Be careful now. On your way to school, be wary of strangers. Choose who you befriend when you are at school. Study them carefully so that you accept only those from whom can make you good in your studies”.
Now, what possibly becomes of this child?
If the child understands all that his parent advises, off he goes to school and he’d be looking over his shoulders precariously at intervals after every five steps. He would not accept any help to cross a busy street to get to the bus stand. He would be paranoid about ever befriending at School.
Let’s rejoin with the Church’s advice to Filipino voters.
Instead of confusing with open-ended obtuse advice, has the Church prelates forgotten in the power of Prayer? It would be more sense that the Church prelates do what they do best; exhort their faithful to seek for Enlightenment when they go to the Ballot and pray that they be guided by the truth.
Every politician preempts on promises during his campaign. Political promises are akin to a Church prelate’s promise of heavenly glory to those who tread the straight and narrow.
Consider this. If a politician promises nothing, what else does he talk about apart from all the flaws of his opponent? That would be a most Church-like politician if he were to talk about global warming, the mathematical probability for a Tsunami striking the Philippines, the multi use of the coconut tree BUT no promises.
As I explained it here before, what is seriously lacking is a clear Manifesto from each of the Presidential candidates. The voter must know why, what and how the candidate intends to achieve and whether his plans are realistic.
The Manifesto reflects his political prowess and will serve as his gauge to the ordinary citizen to decide on who is deemed the best for the job.
