Cleansing moments

She spoke to the nation and she apologized. "I am sorry," she told all of us. It was a lapse of judgment on her part, she said, that she talked to a Comelec official. If we were all given the chance to answer her, what would you say to Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo? This would be my answer to her.

"Dear Madam, I am not sure this letter will reach you but let me just try, to let you know that we all heard you loud and clear when you spoke to the nation last Monday evening.

On a personal level, it is easy to forgive you as all of us have our lapses of judgments, human as we all are. We know, however, that you know that you are not an ordinary person like most of us. We know that you know that you are a public official. We also are sure that you know that you are also not just an ordinary public official. We know that you know that You Are President.

In your public address to us, you said elections were over and the counts already in when you talked to the Comelec official. Perhaps, that is another lapse, your memory of the dates of your phone conversations now being contested, that when you made your calls, the canvassing was not yet totally, completely over. Hence, for a public official, and a presidential candidate at that, to talk to any Comelec official within the election period is clearly prohibited by law.

Even without legalities, however, delicadeza and integrity would have stopped someone like you from even talking to an official of an office mandated to ensure clean and honest elections.

We are sure that you will tell us that you have your principles and as far as you are concerned, you have been honest and have won the elections fair and square.

We leave that for those who wish to challenge you on the real results of the elections. We even leave the tapes to those who wish to make political mileage out of these.

For me personally, what you said during the taped conversations is already immaterial. Whether the genuine tapes contain evidence that will support your honesty or not is, to me, not the crucial issue. What I find most disturbing is one of your position and intellect called a Comelec official before canvassing was completed. Why?

You have explained to the nation that you called to ensure the sacredness of the electoral results. Deep in your heart, and before the Lord, was this the real reason why you decided to personally call? Why could you not have left the calls or reminders to mandated Comelec officials to other trusted members of your cabinet or your government? Why did it have to be you, a candidate, and then the highest public official of our land, to make those calls to a Comelec official during those crucial periods?

Rather than a lapse of judgment, Madam, is it correct for me to think that it was lack of trust on your part then that is now hounding you? Had you fully trusted the electoral system, had you fully trusted that the Filipino people would vote for you, had you fully trusted your self, and most especially, had you fully trusted God and His will for you, then, would you have had to make those calls at all?

However, let these present political challenges now be cleansing moments then for you, for us all, for the whole nation, Madam. Is it correct to say that your doubt in God's will and the will of the Filipino people brought you to this stage? If you feel the nation's doubt now, is it not because you doubted first, hence your calls to a Comelec official?

Perhaps these present political turmoils are beautiful opportunities for you and the whole nation to go through these cleansing moments and to lift and offer to the Lord the real meaning and practice of truth and honesty?

The Lord will surely guide you where He wants you and all of us to be, back in His loving arms and care, back to His truth, His way. We continue to pray for you, Madam Gloria, and for all our people. Surely, the Lord will lead you and us to His way beyond these cleansing, trying moments."

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