Thank you, Ricardo J. Cardinal Vidal!
We join all who mourn the loss of Cardinal Vidal- our loss but heaven's gain, though.
Now, the good Cardinal must be continuing his prayers for Cebu, for the whole country. In that sense, although we grieve, at the same time, we are consoled that we now have him up there, with his prayers, in the presence of our Lord and His eternal peace and love.
The two-day jeepney strike had just ended, when the former Cebu Archbishop joined the Lord. Had the jeepney strike taken place during his younger years as Archbishop of Cebu, would the jeepney drivers have been emboldened to meet with him to ask for his support for their cause?
I ask this because I remember joining a group of urban poor partners who went to have an audience with Cardinal Vidal. If I recall correctly, among them were trisikad drivers who then were being disallowed to operate at the Cebu port. In their rugged attire and dirty slippers, a number of them stood before the kind Cardinal. Unused to having an audience with the highest official of the Church in Cebu, their spokesperson addressed His Eminence as Sir as he tried to explain their cause and their reason for their dialogue that day. Another issue discussed with him that day, if I recall correctly, was about asking his permission and support to initiate prayers in church, especially during masses, to enlighten our people and the officials not to pay "illegitimate debts" incurred by Marcos and his cronies.
A very attentive, patient, and understanding Cardinal Vidal listened to the issues and in his soft-spoken way, interacted warmly, especially with the urban poor. I cannot now recall what were resolved during the meeting but I do remember how happy the urban poor partners were to have had the honor of meeting and dialoguing with His Eminence.
Dialogue, not patayan as threatened again by a trigger-happy Duterte, hopefully will be resorted to with the striking jeepney drivers in the following days. Merits and demerits of the jeepney modernization program as well as the voices of stakeholders, the passengers, the jeepney drivers, the strikers and non-strikers, and government need to be discussed thoroughly and agreements reached after patient dialogue and information.
Are there safety nets, for example, for the jeepney drivers who will join the program or and those who will not? Has enough time and preparation been allotted to cushion especially those whose livelihood will be adversely affected by this proposed jeepney modernization program? Who will benefit most from this program? Will the commuting passengers be able to afford the expected increased jeepney fares? Have other support systems (road and transport schedules, infrastructure, others) been adequately prepared and the public adequately informed about all the important details of this jeepney modernization program?
Cardinal Vidal would have been interested to know how this issue affecting the jeepney drivers, the commuters, and the government would be peacefully resolved. He would have also continued to pray, together with us all, the Oratio Imperata issued by our present Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma for the complete and genuine restoration of peace in war-stricken Marawi.
A day before Cardinal Vidal died, while Duterte issued his "strategic statement" which declared "the liberation of Marawi City from the terrorist influence," fighting still continues. Complete peace remains elusive with "militancy (in the region)" not yet ended completely.
Hence, together with Cardinal Vidal up in heaven, together with Archbishop Palma in Cebu, let us continue to pray the Oratio Imperata, imploring God to completely silence all guns, to intervene and end all strife in Marawi City and all other parts of Mindanao, and all throughout our country.
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