“Kaya pa ba? May pag-asa pa ba (Can we still endure this? Is there still hope)?” Fr. Eugene Elivera asked as he opened a prayer rally at Seminario de San Jose in Puerto Princesa, joined by hundreds calling for accountability and an end to corruption.
Clad mostly in white, participants included students from Holy Trinity University, residents, and religious leaders who voiced frustration over anomalies exposed in the ongoing probe on flood control projects.
“Tama na! Sobra na! Dismayado na kami (Stop it already! It’s too much. We’re already dismayed)!” Elivera said, recalling how corruption has plagued the country for decades.
Former One Palawan Movement convenor Cynthia Del Rosario also criticized the lack of justice in past scandals like the pork barrel scam.
“Ano ang nangyari noong nagreklamo tayo sa pork barrel? Ang napanagot, eh maliit na isda, si [Janet] Napoles,” she said, adding that the attempt to divide Palawan into three provinces was for “self-interest.”
The night ended with interfaith prayers for good governance, followed by the signing of a statement from the city’s apostolic vicariate in support of the anti-corruption movement.