By EUGENE ADIONG
BACOLOD City — Should people in Murcia town expect a “ceasefire” between the quarreling municipal government officials and priests once Diocese of Bacolod Bishop Vicente Navarra enters the scene?
Yesterday, Mayor Andrew Montelibano handed over to Navarra a Sangguniang Bayan (SB) resolution seeking the transfer of Murcia’s parish priest Fr. Greg Patiño and parochial vicar Fr. Agustin Hinayan.
Passed on Monday, the SB resolution said that, for more than five months now, Patiño and Hinayan have been making public pronouncements that “tend to incite protest, disappointment and anger” among the town’s laity.
The priests have reportedly been criticizing the town officials’ alleged inaction on illegal drugs and illegal gambling.
According to the resolution, the priests were “wittingly or unwittingly destroying the goodwill of Murcia and the morale of the people.”
Montelibano and Navarra talked behind closed doors at the latter’s office at the Bishop’s Palace here for about 30 minutes.
Montelibano later told reporters that Navarra said “there should be a ‘ceasefire’ in Murcia.” He said they will take the bishop’s advice.
He said Patiño and Hinayan will be called to the Bishop’s Palace. The bishop may decide on our petition within a week, said the mayor.
“Patiño and Hinayan have made themselves literally unwelcome transient guest priests of the municipality that is considered home of the complaining laity,” said the resolution.
The SB members asked Navarra to implement new assignments for the two priests as soon as possible.
Montelibano said that if Navarra cannot take Patiño and Hinayan out of Murcia, “I will bring the matter to the attention of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, the Vatican ambassador to the Philippines, and even the pope.”
Navarra refused to be interviewed by the media.
For his part, Patiño said he will leave his fate to Navarra. “He (Navarra) assigned us here, and only he could order our transfer,” he said.
He called the Murcia officials’ petition a “diversionary tactic” to put “real issues” in the town away from the limelight.
“We did not pinpoint any individual,” Patiño said, adding that how Montelibano and other officials reacted surprised him./PN
