White clothes signal Filipino opposition to corruption

The Philippines is facing a major corruption scandal with public officials and private contractors accused of stealing billions of pesos earmarked for flood control projects.

To symbolise the current fight against corruption, the president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David, urged Filipino Catholics “to wear white clothes every Sunday of October and November”.

In an October 11 statement, the cardinal also encouraged them “to display white ribbons in homes, churches and public places – as a sign of our desire for transparency, accountability and good governance, and as a humble prayer that our nation may be washed clean and renewed in God’s mercy, and spared of further calamities”.

The CBCP, in relation to the flood control scandal, earlier declared a National Day of Prayer and Repentance on October 7. A group of Catholic bishops and priests had also helped organise the Trillion Peso March against corruption on September 21, which drew tens of thousands of protesters and which Cardinal David himself attended.

In an October 7 open letter to people in government, Cardinal David rejected a “whitewash” in ongoing investigations into the flood control scandal. He also cautioned the Senate against changing its leadership now, as it investigates the corruption allegations, because this “would only heighten public suspicion of a cover-up”.

“The Filipino people are watching closely,” Cardinal David warned. “We strongly oppose any attempt to pre-empt or derail the investigation through backroom deals, leadership takeovers or selective justice. A nation cannot heal when its moral arteries are clogged by corruption and self-interest.”

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Catholic leaders urge Filipinos to wear white against corruption (By Joseph San Mateo/CruxNow)