NewsWhore
04-09-2007, 05:50 PM
In Santo Domingo the priests conducting the services of the Seven Words lashed out at government's spending policies and waste. The Santo Domingo Metro and low salaries for government workers were two of the targets, and the waste in government spending and the transporter unions were two more. During the Sermon of the Seven Words, delivered on Good Friday in the Cathedral in Santo Domingo, the priests called for an awakening from the sound sleep that is keeping the nation illiterate, hungry, corrupt and poor. The rich were also targeted as the priests asked them to avoid ostentation and to live a more austere live style.
Father Mario de la Cruz Campusano said that it was not justifiable that a legislator should earn RD$200,000 per month and a construction worker just RD$3,900. The sermon demanded to know "where are our taxes going?" De la Cruz Campusano also questioned the RD$55 billion being spent on the Metro when there are so many evident deficiencies in the educational and health sectors. The priests
Speaking alongside Father de la Cruz Campusano, fathers Jose Pastor Ramirez Fernandez, Guillermo Rosario, Jose Arismendy de Leon Helena, Javier Vidal, Ramon Suero Serrano, and Juan Gonzalez gave the sermon.
The parish priest for Santo Domingo Savio, Javier Vidal, read the Fifth Word, and revealed that 47% of the population lives on less than RD$3,398 per month, and 24.6% live on less than RD$1,649 per month. In the southwestern provinces, 68.5% of the population lives in poverty. Vidal urged that government funds spent on propaganda instead be used in programs that benefit the poor. Commenting the lecture, father Paul Vidal of Guachupita specifically mentioned government official perks that are paid for by taxpayer money. "The yipetas of government officers are where our taxes are going, lamented father Vidal. Vidal told the faithful, "If we are really a Christian country, we cannot remain indifferent to the poverty...in the Dominican Republic."
Different sectors of the Dominican society said that they supported the priest's remarks. Politicians, civilian watchdog groups and emerging political entities felt that the priests were correct in their assessments. A spokesperson for the CNTU, one of the transport unions, denied that they operate on a for-profit basis.
More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#2)
Father Mario de la Cruz Campusano said that it was not justifiable that a legislator should earn RD$200,000 per month and a construction worker just RD$3,900. The sermon demanded to know "where are our taxes going?" De la Cruz Campusano also questioned the RD$55 billion being spent on the Metro when there are so many evident deficiencies in the educational and health sectors. The priests
Speaking alongside Father de la Cruz Campusano, fathers Jose Pastor Ramirez Fernandez, Guillermo Rosario, Jose Arismendy de Leon Helena, Javier Vidal, Ramon Suero Serrano, and Juan Gonzalez gave the sermon.
The parish priest for Santo Domingo Savio, Javier Vidal, read the Fifth Word, and revealed that 47% of the population lives on less than RD$3,398 per month, and 24.6% live on less than RD$1,649 per month. In the southwestern provinces, 68.5% of the population lives in poverty. Vidal urged that government funds spent on propaganda instead be used in programs that benefit the poor. Commenting the lecture, father Paul Vidal of Guachupita specifically mentioned government official perks that are paid for by taxpayer money. "The yipetas of government officers are where our taxes are going, lamented father Vidal. Vidal told the faithful, "If we are really a Christian country, we cannot remain indifferent to the poverty...in the Dominican Republic."
Different sectors of the Dominican society said that they supported the priest's remarks. Politicians, civilian watchdog groups and emerging political entities felt that the priests were correct in their assessments. A spokesperson for the CNTU, one of the transport unions, denied that they operate on a for-profit basis.
More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#2)