‘The huge dilemma that the President faces includes reforming a decaying system of deeply-entrenched thievery and corruption in the government that he cannot fully fix during his term.’
SINCE the presidency of Cory Aquino, the Bureau of Immigration (BI) has gone through a series of reorganizations, with a number of erring officers and employees dismissed or suspended. Many were also criminally charged in court. And yet, the current state of corruption and extortion there, according to an insider, has worsened.
The case of the Guo sisters slipping out of the country, despite a Senate arrest order against former Bamban, Tarlac mayor Alice Guo, caused quite an embarrassment for President Bongbong Marcos. He was kept in the dark, according to Sen. Sherwin “Win” Gatchalian.
The senator said that his BI source informed him that immigration officials had already known that the former mayor and her siblings had left the country before Sen. Risa Hontiveros divulged the escape in a privileged speech at the Senate last Aug. 19.
Well, nothing surprising there. BI officials, in cahoots with airport personnel, have been caught before facilitating the entry and departure of foreigners with fake documents.
Incensed, President Marcos Jr. announced a week ago that “heads will roll,” adding “there would be no sacred cows.”
We just hope he is determined to cleanse the BI and other concerned agencies of scalawags and corrupt personnel as he confronts the reality that the Philippines continues to slide in international confidence ratings of foreign investors doing business here. Many have relocated to Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam.
The huge dilemma that the President faces includes reforming a decaying system of deeply entrenched thievery and corruption in the government that he cannot fully fix during his term. Countless erring officials and employees have remained in their positions because they are protected by a tedious and dragging lawful process under the Civil Service Code.
A new leadership at the BI armed with special powers directly from the President must be unquestionably incorruptible, non-partisan, fearless and competent. President Marcos should realize by now that the corrupt and politically connected have perfected fooling their superiors and running circles around them and other personnel.
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The Live In Victory Christian Church, Favor Christian Ministries at the Ortigas Center, and the Church So Blessed in Quezon City are heavily grounded in healings and deliverances and continue to grow rapidly. Live in Victory and Church So Blessed were founded and are currently headed by head pastor Manny Manansala and senior pastor Hiram Pangilinan, respectively.
Most of their members come from the bigger Born-Again churches in Metro Manila who had been enlightened ultimately that healings of sickness, pain, and infirmities, along with emotional and mental distresses are “essential parts of the Gospel.” And they are called to restore God’s mercies, kindness, joy, good health, victory and power for broken people oppressed by Satan.
Bill Johnson, head pastor of Bethel Church in California, recounts an astonishing miracle in Mozambique. Through his books and preachings, he has taught tens of thousands how to effectively pray for healing and deliverance.
One of his members chanced upon a highway accident where a bus had turned over with injured passengers strewn in the street. One of them was dead, her neck broken. The church member instructed the uninjured passengers to pray and “speak life” to the injured, including the dead woman. Suddenly, the dead woman rose, fully healed of her fatal neck injury. The other injured passengers also recovered miraculously.
The following is from Christian author Andrew Murray’s book Healing Secrets: “The gift of healing is one of the most beautiful manifestations of the Spirit. It is recorded of Jesus, “God anointed Jesus of Nazareth, who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed by the devil.” (Acts 10:38). The Holy Spirit in Him was a healing Spirit, and He was the same in the disciples after Pentecost. Thus, the words of our text express what was the continuous experience of the early churches. (Acts 3:7; 4:30; 5:12, 15-16; 6:8; 8:7) The abundant outpouring of the Spirit produced abundant healings. What a lesson for the church in our day.”
“Divine healing is the work of the Holy Spirit. Christ’s redemption extends its powerful working in the body, and the Holy Spirit is in charge of transmitting it to us and maintaining it in us. Our bodies share in the benefit of the redemption, and even now we can receive the pledge of it by divine healing.”
“It is Jesus who heals, Jesus who anoints and baptizes with the Holy Spirit and Jesus who baptized His disciples with the same Spirit. It is He who sends us the Holy Spirit here on earth to take sickness away from us and to restore us to health.”
