Press Release

   A NATION IN SEARCH OF TRUTH

There are rare moments in a nation’s life when ordinary citizens are thrust into center stage to witness to truth in a journey of conversion. When this occurs, a golden opportunity for genuine social transformation awaits citizens who are prayerful, vigilant, and who seize the day. One such moment may be the current expose by a low-key former government official.

Rodolfo Lozada Jr’s testimony comes as a blast of fresh air in the arid desert of brazen corruption in government. Claiming no self righteousness, he gives us an inside look of how power corrupts and makes the powerful oblivious to the common good. His expose responds to the call of conscience and of saving one’s remaining self-respect.

Our country is a rich nation made poor by graft and corruption victimizing all of us. The revelations of Lozada, the rampant smuggling of vehicles in Cebu, the Lapulapu overpriced computers, the ASEAN lamppost scam, the Girl Scout graft case, the Comelec computerization case, the fertilizer scam, and PIATCO case indicate systemic corruption and of high-level complicity. Denial has become a way of life, akin to that of substance addiction. Delay is synonymous with government anti-corruption work. Meanwhile the nation suffers.

We are in this together as part of the problem and part of the solution. Apathetic silence makes us part of the problem. So do bribery and tax evasion. Solidarity, that “firm and persevering determination to commit oneself to the common good,” makes us part of the solution.

Dilaab calls for non-partisan solidarity in our communal search for truth. We join our voices to those of other men and women of faith and good will who call for unceasing vigilance in the Senate hearings and in other constitutional measures to ferret out the truth regarding the ZTE deal. It is our birthright to be told the truth. A transparent, impartial, and immediate investigation, with access to information, must be initiated with culprits held accountable. 

We continue to call for daily prayer for transformation for our nation. We also advocate support for reforms in government procurement practices and professionalization of the government bureaucracy. We also call for better witness protection programs and protection against abuse of government power. Meanwhile, we pray that Jun Lozada and his family would not lose heart.  They are not alone.

Through faith-impelled solidarity the likes of Lozada will no longer be rare. Only then can we reverse the culture of corruption, remove the source of our shame, and find our soul.
 
(sgd)
FR. CARMELO O. DIOLA
Dilaab Overall Coordinating Steward
16 February 2008