Bishop Florencio: Respect, take care of environment

Florencio

CEBU Auxiliary Bishop Oscar Florencio yesterday urged the faithful to become stewards of the environment.

“It (environment) is a gift to us. It has to be respected as a gift,” he said in his homily during the Mass in celebration of Earth Day at the San Carlos Seminary College in Cebu City.

The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines, through its social action arm National Secretariat for Social Action and Caritas Philippines, filled a symbolic eco-wall with commitments  from representatives of nine archdioceses in areas struck by Supertyphoon Yolanda in November 2013 to protect the environment.

“This is to signify our commitment to protect the earth and the creation, especially we all know that the Philippines is at the doorstep of all major threats of climate change,” said Nassa/Caritas executive secretary Fr. Edwin Gariguez.

Nassa is spearheading a three-year rehabilitation program, #REACHPhilippines, in the archdioceses of Antique, Eastern Samar, Western Samar, Capiz, Cebu, Iloilo, Aklan, Leyte and Palawan. About 1.8 million people have benefited from the program, which has a budget of over P3.5 billion.

The program includes watershed rehabilitation, mangrove and reforestation projects and maintenance of material recovery facilities.

Meanwhile, members of the People’s Movement for Climate Justice (PMCJ) hung at the flyover in front of the Social Security System (SSS) building a streamer containing the pro-environment agenda that they think presidential candidates should adopt.

Five participants wearing masks of presidential candidates Grace Poe, Jejomar Binay, Manuel Roxas II, Rodrigo Duterte and Miriam Santiago unfolded the streamer.

“We are disappointed because during the presidential debates, no one talked about environment issues,” said Teody Navea, Sanlakas Sugbo secretary general.

The group is asking candidates to focus on biodiversity and ecosystem integrity, natural resource and land use management and governance, human rights and integrity of creation, climate justice, energy transformation and democracy, mining, extractives and mineral resource management, sustainable agriculture and food sovereignty, people-centered sustainable development and governance, and waste.

Participating organizations were led by members of Sanlakas-Cebu, Freedom from Debt Coalition (FDC-Cebu), Kongreso ng Pagkakaisa ng Maralitang Lungsod (KPML-Cebu), and Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino (BMP-Cebu).