MANILA, Philippines – A new faith-based movement against Vice President Sara Duterte burned the “seven sins of the Dutertes” in a Catholic ritual ahead of Ash Wednesday, March 5, the start of the penitential season of Lent.
It was also the launch of a campaign to gather one million signatures to pressure the Senate to start Duterte’s impeachment trial immediately.
The People’s Impeachment Movement — composed of priests, nuns, pastors, and laypersons — held the “Sunog Sala, Kontra Abo” prayer service at the Sacred Heart Parish-Shrine in Kamuning, Quezon City, on Tuesday morning, March 4.
“Sunog Sala,” which literally means “burning of sins,” refers to the Catholic tradition of burning palm fronds used in the previous year’s Palm Sunday to produce the ashes needed for the current year’s Ash Wednesday.
“Kontra Abo” refers to the group’s advocacy — against the acronym “ABO,” which means “Abusive Behavior and Oppression.”
“This burning is a symbol of the staunch opposition to the return of the Dutertes in power, as well as the call for justice by victims of extrajudicial killings,” an emcee said at the start of the event.
The People’s Impeachment Movement listed the “seven sins” of the Duterte family:
- Pride, including the use of violence to pursue the war on drugs and other objectives
- Greed, including the Vice President’s allegedly questionable use of P125 million ($2.16 million) in confidential funds in a span of 11 days
- Lust for power, which meant compromising the country’s sovereignty to appease China
- Envy, which pushed former president Rodrigo Duterte to destroy those who opposed him
- Gluttony, the insatiable hunger for power and money that resulted in the Duterte political dynasty
- Anger, which resulted in the deaths of thousands of people during Duterte’s term
- Sloth, which led the government to neglect the ordinary Filipino’s welfare
“We burned the palm fronds, along with the sins of the Dutertes, using the candle of hope and justice,” said Father Flavie Villanueva, one of the convenors of the People’s Impeachment Movement, in a press conference after the prayer service.
One of the ways by which the Dutertes can be held accountable is by immediately starting the impeachment trial of the Vice President, the group asserted.
Villanueva said the Constitution is clear: The Senate “shall proceed forthwith” in holding an impeachment trial once it receives the articles of impeachment from the House of Representatives. Commencing the trial, he said, is not the discretion of the Senate and its leader, Senate President Francis Escudero.
“This is their moral obligation — a moral obligation on which we stand firm because we believe that denouncing evil and standing by the good is our highest calling,” Villanueva said.
Escudero had said that the Senate cannot start the impeachment trial while Congress is on recess. In his proposed timetable, the trial will begin on July 30, nearly six months after the House impeached Duterte on February 5.
Beyond Duterte’s impeachment trial, the panel at the press conference set its sights on the 2028 presidential election, where she is expected to be one of the front runners if she withstands her current political crisis.
The Dutertes had already been sidelined after the Vice President had a fallout with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and his allies, including House Speaker Martin Romualdez.
“Let us not allow the cruelty and violence of the past administration to return. Let us, as early as now, block the attempt of the Dutertes to return to power,” said one of the panelists, Randy delos Santos.
Delos Santos is the uncle of Kian delos Santos, the 17-year-old student killed by policemen during Duterte’s anti-drug campaign in August 2017.
Pastor Leonard Arevalo of the Novaliches Ecumenical Fellowship said he joined the People’s Impeachment Movement, because “there is no space in our government for these kinds of leaders.”
Sister Evelyn Jose of the Conference of Major Superiors of the Philippines said delaying Duterte’s impeachment trial is “a great injustice for the people.” She said Duterte’s alleged misuse of confidential funds deprived the public of money that came from their “blood, sweat, and tears.”
Reverend Dionito Cabillas of the Iglesia Filipina Independiente said Tuesday’s event was the start of many movements to convince the Senate to start Duterte’s impeachment trial as soon as possible. “We are just the ones who will start and light the fire in this battle,” Cabillas said.
A one-of-a-kind coalition of different religious groups, the People’s Impeachment Movement also addressed potential criticism that it is using rituals of faith, such as Tuesday’s Sunog Sala, for political messaging.
“Let me make it clear that it just so happened that the sins of the Dutertes are the most recent and most grave,” Villanueva said. “I feel remorse for the sins that I also burned a while ago. Why? Because I am guilty of all of them.”
“This is also our appeal: You cannot point at Duterte without pointing at yourselves,” the priest said. “Please don’t get us wrong. The last thing we want to do is to judge anyone. But we will hold anyone, especially for their public sins, accountable.” – Rappler.com