Catholic, IFI groups gear up for united front against Opol casino

Cagayan de Oro Archbishop Jose Cabantan meets with Opol town residents and parish leaders, agreeing to a signature campaign against the casino operations in Misamis Oriental

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY, Philippines – The leaders of two religious groups are putting up a united front against a casino which opened in the neighboring town of Opol, Misamis Oriental.

Opol town Catholic parish priest Father Joel Oga said he would meet with his counterparts in the Iglesia Filipina Independiente (IFI) to unify and strengthen their opposition to the Grand Imperial casino under the Philippine Gaming Amusement Corporation (PAGCOR) in Barangay Taboc.

The casino opened in December and has since been operating from 2 pm to 10 pm daily.

“We were not properly consulted. We were misled into believing that it was just an ordinary office,” Father Oga said.

Oga said Cagayan de Oro Archbishop Jose Cabantan, residents of Opol, and parish leaders met on Wednesday, January 5, and vowed to oppose the casino’s operations.

The group also agreed to start a signature campaign against the casino this week.

Cabantan is preparing to issue another pastoral letter and lead the signature campaign throughout the archdiocese that covers Cagayan de Oro, Misamis Oriental, and Camiguin.

IFI Bishop Felixberto Calang of Cagayan de Oro said Bishop Redeemer Yanez of the Libertad diocese would meet their priests this week to discuss how the IFI would carry out opposition to the casino’s operations. The IFI churches in Opol are under the Libertad diocese.

Calang said the casino, situated some 300 meters from an IFI church in Barangay Taboc, was an affront to their faith and group – which is staunchly anti-casino.

“IFI strongly opposes any form of gambling. Casino [promotes] games of chance, gambling,” Calang said.

The Catholic archdiocese and the IFI have sizable followers in Opol town which is only a few minutes of drive away from Cagayan de Oro City.

The two religious groups were responsible for blocking the efforts of PAGCOR to open a casino in Cagayan de Oro in 1993.

https://www.rappler.com/nation/catholic-ifi-prepare-united-front-against-opol-casino/