Manila Archbishop Advincula urges Filipinos to pray for the country's leaders amid political tensions
Manila Archbishop Jose Cardinal Advincula released a statement on Wednesday urging Filipinos to pray amid the "brewing" political tension between President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Vice President Sara Duterte.
In his statement, Advincula said that the country is still facing the effects of the recent typhoons, and yet the political storm that the heads of the state are facing "has drained their energy to serve those in most need and the neglected."
"Of late, events in our country have been disconcerting. Many of our people are still reeling from the effects of the onslaught of recent typhoons. The brewing political storm that our political leaders are facing has drained their energy to serve those in most need and the neglected," he started.
He asked the Filipinos to pray for the country's political leaders so that they could "exercise statesmanship."
"I humbly exhort you all to pray for them that they may receive the grace to exercise statesmanship in most trying times so that sobriety may prevail in our land and that political issues and personal interests may not divide the nation," he added.
He expressed a desire for unity and cooperation among political leaders while calling on other "leaders of goodwill from different sectors of our society" to help maintain social harmony and "prevent further escalation of political and personal conflicts."
"Let us all pray for forgiveness and reconciliation, never doubting God's grace and love for His people. In Jesus, the Good Shepherd, I entrust you all who are called to serve the common good. May Almighty God bless our beloved country," the statement ended.
This is after a months-long probe into the actions of the Office of the Vice President (OVP) that eventually reached a boiling point when her chief of staff, Zuleika Lopez, got detained due to being cited in contempt by the House of Representatives.
In a press conference, Duterte revealed that she talked to her staff and asked them to kill Marcos, his wife Liza Araneta, and House Speaker Martin Romualdez if she died.
"Nagbilin na ako, Ma’am. 'Pag namatay ako, 'wag ka tumigil hanggang hindi mo mapapatay sila.' And then he said yes," she added.
Since then, Marcos and Duterte have engaged in a series of mutual attacks.
Marcos addressed the death threats issued by the incumbent vice president, stressing that such a serious threat is not something to let pass. However, Duterte responded, saying that her previous statement was “taken out of its logical context."
"I raise this caution as the President and his sycophants aggressively sell a narrative based entirely on my statement," she said.
