The local chapter of the International Real Estate Federation (FIABCI), the world’s largest Paris-based property and professional organization, has expressed its support for the Catholic Church in opposing any moves to destabilize the country, following Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David’s call for accountability in the anomalous flood control projects.

FIABCI-Philippines chairman Dr. Reghis M. Romero II emphasized that the ongoing corruption probes should serve to strengthen the government, not weaken it.

Romero’s statement reflected the broader sentiment within the industry, highlighting concerns over the potentially devastating impact of political unrest on the national economy.

Thus, Romero gave credence to the Facebook posts of Cardinal David dismissing calls for the establishment of a military junta as mere attempts by “dynasties and plunderers” to avoid accountability.

“We seek not the collapse of the state but its redemption,” Cardinal David posted on Facebook as he called for a “dismantling, not of the government itself, but of the corrupt networks that have captured and crippled it.”

“We do not need to burn the house down to get rid of the rats,” the cardinal stressed, obviously referring to the corrupt.

David is president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), which has issued a statement titled “Beyond Survival: Rising Above the Floods of Corruption.”

The CBCP statement elicited the support of the FIABCI-Ph board as Romero wrote to its president Nestor S. Mangio, stressing the current “unprecedented wave of (corruption) scandals” that undeniably need attention and responsible involvement.

The CBCP statement “calls upon everyone to take united, concrete steps to promote accountability and ensure restitution,” said Romero.  

The CBCP’s call came on the heels of legislative inquiries into the massive corruption involved in big-ticket flood control projects.