Malacañang on Sunday lauded the election of Davao Archbishop Romulo Valles as the new Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) President, which could pave the way for a more open dialogue between the church and government. ADVERTISEMENTREAD: Davao archbishop is new CBCP presidentThe election of an archbishop from Mindanao could signal better relations between the Catholic Church, which has criticized the administration’s drug war, and the President, who called the church a hypocritical institution and even claimed he was molested by a Jesuit priest when he was young. Abella said the election of a Davao bishop to the CBCP could help promote a more open dialogue and cooperation between the church and the government. Valles served as Davao archbishop until 2012, when President Duterte was still Davao City mayor. JE/rgaADVERTISEMENTREAD: Duterte slams Church as hypocritical institution

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer July 09, 2017 05:48 UTC