News Roundup 12 April 2022
Apr 12, 2022 • 4 min Read
Isko Moreno supporters group joins Robredo’s ‘pink’ wave after attempts of unification | PHILSTAR.COM – A group of supporters of presidential candidate and incumbent Manila Mayor Isko Moreno are now backing the bid of vice president Leni Robredo for the country’s top post after failed unification talks. In a conference on Tuesday, Ikaw Muna (IM) Pilipinas volunteers said they shifted their support because they want to unify and stand behind a candidate that can beat Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. “We are not now just fighting for the presidency [as] supporters and volunteers of these candidates. We are fighting for our country. Saan tayo pupunta (where we are going after) the elections,” former MMDA general manager and former overall coordinator of Moreno’s volunteer groups Tim Orbos said. While they recognize that the sins of the father — alluding to the late president who — are not of the son’s, they noted of what Marcos Jr.’s return to Malacañan would symbolize. “The resurrection of the Marcoses through its inept, unqualified, and overly entitled heir is our country’s real and present danger now,” the group’s secretary general Elmer Argaño said. However, the group said they harbor no ill feelings and only have praises for the Manila mayor. They said Moreno still has all the qualities of a leader they want. “In a different time, different place–he could have been a good leader and he is a good leader. And I believe that the future is open for him… but times are different right now,” Orbos said. The group’s switch comes in the heels of IM Pilipinas Visayas Chapter declaring support for Robredo and IM Pilipinas Zamboanga chapter’s announcement of backing instead the candidacy of Robredo and Sara Duterte’s vice presidential campaign. Moreno’s camp earlier brushed off reports of groups withdrawing their support for the Manila mayor’s candidacy, saying the announcements might not reflect the sentiments of every volunteer and member. IM Pilipinas’ network is said to have 20,000 active members on top of 200,000 to 300,000 volunteers across 30 provincial chapters.
Board of biggest university in Central Luzon backs Robredo, Pangilinan | INQUIRER.NET – The board of trustees of the Holy Angel University (HAU), the biggest in the Central Luzon region in terms of enrollment, has endorsed presidential aspirant Vice President Leni Robredo and her running mate Sen. Francis Pangilinan. In a manifesto of support posted on HAU’s website on Tuesday, the board said it “proudly expresses its support” for the candidacies of the pair. The statement, signed on April 12, came a few days after an election campaign rally that organizers said drew around 220,000 attendees. Sr. Josefina Nepomuceno, a Benedictine nun and daughter of HAU founder, chairs the board. Pampanga Archbishop Emeritus Paciano Aniceto served as vice chair while Leopoldo Jaime Valdes leads as president. The brothers Geromin and Peter Nepomuceno as well as Leonida Africa, Jose de Jesus, Ma. Rita Josefina Valdes Chua, Henry Antonio, and Elfren Hipolito Jr. serve as trustees. “As stewards of a center of excellence for learning, we are committed to guiding individuals to become builders of a better society and nation—people who seek the truth in an era where lies and disinformation threaten the sanctity of democracy,” the board explained. It also described Robredo and Pangilinan as having “served the Filipino people for so many years, reaching out at the community level and seeking to improve the lives of those in the vulnerable sectors and fringes of society, such as our humble workers, farmers, and fishermen.” “Both have served multiple terms unmarred and untainted by corruption,” it added. The board called on HAU’s faculty, employees, students, and other stakeholders to “join us in this fight for a brighter future.” “We are finally given a chance for real change,” it pointed out.
Faithful urged to find time to observe Holy Week traditions | Manila Bulletin – With the ease in restrictions and mobility, Ozamis Archbishop Martin Jumoad urged the faithful to find time to observe Holy Week rituals and traditions particularly during the Paschal Triduum. With many planning to go on vacation, the bishop said, the faithful must also find time for their spiritual obligations. “As Christians, we have to find time to reflect and attend Church rites and rituals this Holy Week in our local parishes, If we have the time to go to the beach, to go on vacation, let us find time during the Paschal Triduum on Maundy Thursday or Good Friday to go to church,” Archbishop Jumoad said over Radio Veritas. “Let us give importance to nourishing our faith particularly during the Holy Week especially during the Paschal Triduum. Let us reflect on the passion, death and resurrection of Christ that saved man from eternal damnation,” he added. Archbishop Jumoad stressed that the resurrection of Christ on Easter Sunday is the foundation of the Christian faith. “I urge our Catholic faithful who will go on vacation to find time to go to church especially on Easter Sunday to celebrate the core of our faith. Without Christ’s resurrection, our faith is nothing,” the Church leader said.
