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BY GLENDA SOLOGASTOA
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Monday, June 5, 2017
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ILOILO City – The Archdiocese of Jaro asked two priests under fire from some of their parishioners to take a leave of absence.
The archdiocese is currently investigating the complaints lodged against Father Abelardo Sobredo of Guimbal, Iloilo and Monsignor Juanito Tuvilla of Santa Barbara town for, among others, alleged conduct unbecoming of priests.
The letters from Archbishop Angel Lagdameo asking the two priests to take a leave of absence were personally delivered yesterday by Monsignor Jose Marie Delgado, director of the Jaro Archdiocesan Commission on Social Communications.
Delgado hoped that this initial action of the archdiocese will bring peace and unity in the parishes of Guimbal and Santa Barbara.
Around 4,000 individuals from 33 Guimbal barangays signed a petition seeking the removal of Sobredo from the town. Thirty-six individuals also separately filed complaints against him.
Meanwhile, several parishioners staged a picket outside the Santa Barbara Church yesterday while Tuvilla was celebrating mass.
Retired Philippine Army solder Armando Sondia claimed Tuvilla acted unbecoming of a priest on May 11 following the requiem mass for the former’s mother. A young girl was singing a song to her deceased grandmother but Tuvilla turned off the microphone and berated the girl, according to Sondia.
Tuvilla denied shouting at the girl.
This was not the first time Tuvilla courted controversy. On April 5 a bridesmaid was reduced to tears in embarrassment during a wedding. During his homily Tuvilla told her her dress was too skimpy.
In 2015, Tuvilla was criticized over remarks that were too testy for some of his parishioners. They demanded his ouster following a burial mass for a dead member of the Susvilla family of Barangay Dalid.
While still inside the Santa Barbara Church, a family member was thanking those who attended when Tuvilla suddenly grabbed the microphone and berated the grieving family. He apparently did not like that the acknowledgement was taking long and threatened to switch off the church’s power supply.
The following day, a Sunday, things worsened. During the homily, he branded the residents of Barangay Dalid as carabao thieves and that the Susvillas were ill-mannered./PN
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