‘Pajero bishops’ lacked delicadeza — Archbishop Cruz

The bishops who received luxury vehicles allegedly bought using Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) funds may not have committed crimes, but they totally forgot good manners when they accepted the vehicles, an anti-gambling prelate said Thursday. Retired Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Oscar Cruz said the Senate investigation on the alleged misuse of PCSO funds showed “impropriety" on the part of the so-called “Pajero bishops." “I do not think there was any crime done or whatever. Ako, ang tingin ko lang, medyo nagkulang sa delicadeza. Nagkulang sa mabuting asal, so to speak," he told GMA News TV’s “News To Go" anchor Howie Severino in an interview. PCSO chairperson Margie Juico identified three Catholic Church officials who received luxury vehicles, including a Montero Sport worth P1.7 million, bought from PCSO funds in a Senate blue ribbon committee probe on Wednesday.

One of the prelates, Butuan Bishop Juan De Dios Pueblos, even requested the vehicle from Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo when she was still president for his 66th birthday. The bishop admitted to receiving the car, but insisted that it was used to serve poor people in his area. Cruz said it was “impossible" for Arroyo to grant the bishops' requests without expecting anything in return. “If this is to give to Church ventures, bakit ako hihingi dito sa gobyerno? Kapag humingi ka sa gobyerno, nakatali ang kamay mo," he said. The retired archbishop also called on other prelates to stop the practice of asking expensive gifts from government officials. In an earlier interview, Cruz said the bishops who accepted the vehicles from PCSO funds may be sanctioned by the Roman Catholic Church for violating propriety and breaking religious vows. He said the Congregation of Bishops in Rome will likely call for the bishops’ resignations if they are proven guilty of breaking their vows of poverty by accepting vehicles bought using public funds. - KBK, GMA News