Priest on polls: ‘Sinuman ang matalo, gulo pagkatapos’

Priests from various Christian sects claimed on Saturday that the discord sowed by the 2016 elections may harm the country permanently.

In a forum with the National Transformation Council on Saturday, Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Emeritus Oscar Cruz called the upcoming polls as the most fraught election he has witnessed in his 82 years.

Cruz, who criticized President Benigno Aquino III for the Kidapawan massacre, said that there will be chaos regardless of who will emerge as the victor of the May 9 national elections.

"Ke tumingin ka sa kanan, tumingin ka sa kaliwa, wala kang aasahan... Hindi maaring magkaroon ng tagumpay itong eleksyon na ito ng Lunes. Ke sinuman ang manalo, ke sinuman ang matalo, ang problema ay gulo pagkatapos," he said.

Fr. Oscar Cruz: Tumungin man tayo sa kaliwa o sa kanan, delikado ang parating na eleksyon pic.twitter.com/x2aBlexFCS

— Rie Takumi (@rie_takumi) May 7, 2016

"Ang aking konklusyon [ay] imposible na walang demonyo dito sa lupa. At ito po ay iisa sa patunay na ang aking sinasabi, tulad din ng nasabi ng NTC and other entities, something is wrong and something is going to happen, and you better be prepared about it," Cruz continued.

To avoid such a grim situation, Archbishop Emeritus of Davao Fernando R. Capalla said Filipinos must re-evaluate their own actions and unite to protect the future of the country.

"The devil makes us applaud what is wrong and what is diabolical. To me, that is a danger and we must fight that... But we [must] first say: mea culpa," he said.

"[We must] begin transformation with ourselves but we must unite... Let us save our country from the diabolical machinations of Satan," Capalla added.

Pastor Arturo Corpuz reiterated Capalla's message of unity and urged his fellow evangelists to refrain from indulging in pettiness to defend the truth for the Filipino people.

"Dahil sa kanilang pag-aawayaway ay natutuwa si Satanas sa atin dahil nagawa niya yun na tayong mga ibang ebangheliko ay nagaaway-away na rin," Corpuz said.

"Kung matuloy ang halalan na 'to, pagkatapos ng halalan na 'to, ay magkaisa tayo sa tama. Kung meron pong madaya at nangdaya at talagang malawakan ang gagawing pandaraya ay magkaisa tayong tumayo at ipagtanggol ang katotohanan at ipagtanggol ang ating pag-ibig sa bayan," he continued.

The NTC claimed on Saturday that the Aquino administration have already manipulated the polls even before it has begun and called on Filipinos to "reject the illegal and farcical presidential elections."

It proposed an immediate consultation between moral and spiritual leaders from the "Catholic, Protestant/Evangelical, and Islamic churches" and the Armed Forces of the Philippines to consider an alternative to the elections.

"We do not propose a military takeover of the government. We are firmly and vehemently opposed to it. But we do not wish to see the military exploited by any political faction to support any program or activity against the national interest," it stated. —ALG, GMA News