Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David Condemns Flaunting of Wealth Amid Widespread Poverty

Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David has voiced strong condemnation over the ostentatious display of wealth by certain individuals, calling it "obscene" amid the ongoing plight of many Filipinos struggling with hunger and poverty.

During his homily for the Feast of the Passion of St. John the Baptist, delivered last Saturday, the Cardinal criticized the lavish lifestyle flaunted by some, referencing a social media post where a dinner bill for four reportedly amounted to P760,000 — a sum that a typical worker would be unable to earn in three years. "Is it not obscene to indulge like this while most of our people struggle daily to feed their families despite back-breaking work for meager wages?" he questioned.

David further highlighted the controversy involving construction contractors Pacifico “Curlee” Discaya II and Cezarah Rowena “Sarah” Discaya, a couple linked to questionable transactions with the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH). The couple’s financial gains were publicly scrutinized, especially after their unsuccessful bid in the Pasig mayoral race where Mayor Vico Sotto drew attention to their government contracts.

The Cardinal employed the Filipino term "mahalay," meaning "obscene," to describe how private acts or possessions meant to be concealed are instead blatantly exhibited to the public. He stated, "It is obscene when sudden wealth from corruption is paraded as a model of success, when ill-gotten gain is celebrated as cleverness."

David also expressed outrage over perceived injustices, contrasting the jailing of a poor father for minor street gambling with the lack of accountability for alleged multi-billion peso irregularities in flood-control projects across the nation. "It is obscene when a poor father of six is arrested and jailed for allegedly tossing coins in a street-side game of 'cara y cruz,' while no one is arrested, jailed, or charged for squandering billions of pesos of public funds on ghost flood-control projects," he said.

The Cardinal additionally decried the legalization and easy accessibility of online gambling, stating that it is deeply troubling that the government has taken a role in promoting gambling. He also lamented the erosion of law and order, emphasizing how those tasked with upholding laws sometimes violate them.

Concluding his homily, Cardinal David urged the faithful to be disturbed by these injustices and obscenities to awaken a renewed commitment to dignity, decency, and humanity. "We must allow ourselves to be shocked and sickened by such obscenity so that we may be shaken awake, so that we may recover our sense of dignity, decency, and humanity in a society corroded by corruption," he said.