Father Atilano "Nonong" Fajardo re-launches the "Huwag Kang Magnakaw" campaign in line with the dictates of the seventh commandment: "do not steal". He spares no criticism for a nation "of thieves" at every level. But he does not lose optimism: "With good examples, like the Pope, it will be possible to be redeemed."

Manila (AsiaNews/Cbcp) - If he is given the "rare opportunity" to meet the Pope during his visit to the Philippines, he will ask him to pray "that our country" be released from the cancer of "corruption that has infected many" of its citizens. At the same time he hopes that the presence of Francis can be a time of "spiritual renewal", that "Filipinos may learn how to look more and more within thmselves and change for the better." This is what Father Atiliano "Nonong" Fajardo, a priest in charge of the Commission of Public Affairs of the Archdiocese of Manila said in an interview with Cbcp, a few weeks before the arrival of the Argentine Pope in the only Asian nation (along with East Timor) with a Catholic majority.

He also confirmed that the local Church supports the "Huwag Kang Magnakaw" (in the local language "Do not steal", Exodus 20, 15; Deuteronomy 5, 19) movement, led by him and in the forefront of the fight against corruption and dishonesty in public and private sectors. Using a passage from the Old Testament to give voice to the campaign, Father Fajardo intends to send a strong signal to fellow citizens, reminding them that "thefts, robberies, illegal gains" are acts that God has "always disapproved of."

The priest recalls that behind this rigorous approach in the fight against corruption are the example and words of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI; in his encyclical "Spe Salvi" the German Pontiff,  he says, points out that the Gospel is not just talk or the communication of a series of issues, but it is an element of continuous conversion, directed towards good.

According to Father Fajardo the Philippines has become "a nation of thieves", in which almost every person is guilty, for various reasons, of violating the seventh commandment: from the bureaucrats and senior State Officials,  to the last employee or self-employed worker, like a student who copies from a classmate to pass an exam. "Corruption is a monopoly of politicians - he warns - but no one is immune ...".

However, the priest has not lost optimism and hope, because with the right motivation, good examples and special occasions, such as the Pope's visit, Filipinos will be able to redeem themselves. To give more visibility to his initiative, he has produced T-shirts with the writing "Huwag Kang Magnakaw" - a warning and a mirror in which to look at oneself, he says - and he has opened a Facebook page. In the past, the leaders of the Church in the Philippines, including Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, Archbishop of Manila, have launched appeals and campaigns against corruption.

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• corruption