Roque: Some clergymen working with Left

MANILA, Philippines — Days after announcing its plan to dialogue with leaders of the Catholic Church and other religious groups, Malacañang yesterday raised the possibility of some clergymen conniving with communists to oust President Duterte.

At a press briefing in Leyte, presidential spokesman Harry Roque also said some Church leaders were critical of the President because their candidate in the 2016 presidential election lost.

He said it is possible that some Catholic leaders could not accept Duterte’s victory and chose to conspire with the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) and the New People’s Army (NPA) to seek the President’s ouster.

Roque added, however, that they are “dreaming.”

CPP founding chairman Jose Maria Sison earlier said they were no longer pursuing peace talks with the Duterte administration.

“Well, you know that the tirades of the Church started when their candidate lost the election. Let’s be frank. We are all Christians. Many from the Church cannot accept that their candidate lost,” Roque said in English and Filipino.

Roque did not identify the losing candidate allegedly supported by some Catholic clergymen. The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) did not endorse any candidate in the last presidential elections.

Roque made the remark a week after Duterte formed a committee to reach out to leaders of the Catholic Church and other religious groups who were offended by the President’s comments about God.

Duterte had claimed that God was stupid for allowing temptation to corrupt His perfect work. The committee is composed of Roque, Cabinet Secretary Leoncio Evasco Jr., political strategist Pastor Boy Saycon and Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Ernesto Abella.

Roque’s remarks yesterday were a contradiction of his statement last week expressing belief the Church was not being used for destabilization plots.

He had even advised Saycon to be careful when issuing public statements against the Church. Saycon earlier said the Catholic Church had been instrumental in the ouster of former presidents Ferdinand Marcos and Joseph Estrada.

“The President won without cheating... There is no doubt that the mandate was given to President Duterte and the Bible states that the one chosen by the people should be respected,” Roque said.

The Church has been critical of the President’s war on illegal drugs, which has left at least 4,000 people dead.

Despite the rift between Duterte and the Catholic Church, Malacañang is confident his dialogue with CBCP president and Davao Archbishop Romulo Valles would be a success.

“Our expectations are very high because there is very good relations between the president of the CBCP and the President of the Republic, both of whom are natives of Davao,” Roque said.

Duterte’s aide Christopher Go said the meeting was supposed to take place yesterday. The venue was still being finalized.

Earlier, Roque met with Papal Nuncio Archbishop Gabriele Caccia to discuss the relationship between the Church and the state in the Philippines.

“The Church and the state agreed that both of them are working for the good of the people so it would be better if they have a close relationship so they can serve our people well,” Roque said.

“From the start, the President is open to holding a dialogue with everyone, especially now that the president of CBCP is also from Davao,” he added.

More than 80 percent of Filipinos are Catholics.