Side Notes: Incoming Emails, Motives, and Personal Responsibility

It is not my wish to disparage CFC or even FFL, but to give members of both who are unaware an insight into the personalities that are leading both. While one may see their involvment in CFC as a vehicle to do God's work, those who lead the organizations still hold much sway over their actions. I seek to expose motives and help discern the truth, so that God's work can continue to be done without the influence of human foibles and whims.

I have been receiving emails from people who have expressed their support and/or have given more information. An email from a certain B. Aris gives a succinct analysis of the internal issues of CFC. I thought hard about whether to post this or not, as this much insight into the organization that is CFC may be damaging to its reputation. I believe, that armed with the knowledge of its past mistakes, the CFC leadership can forge a new path, one that is beyond reproach and focused on its primary mandate, with TRANSPARENCY at its core to set an example for all.

Here now is an email I received from B. Aris.

Dear CD,

When the Council of Four inherited the governance of CFC after the resignation of Frank Padilla, Tony Meloto, and Lachie Agana, they tried to do what was standard operating procedure - take an inventory of assets and liabilities to set the level of their accountability. To ensure that the process would be as transparent as possible, several experts in the field of accounting and finance among CFC leaders were asked to participate.

Immediately after, Frank Padilla complains and accuses the Council of a witch hunt. For the first time in remembered history of CFC, its finances were being made open for scrutiny in their totality. While totals were being made available to the Council, only a select few, with Maribel Descallar, had access to all documents and detailed figures related to tithes and expenses. The truth was not so apparent, only some facets of it, even to the whole Council.

It was not a witch hunt. When it was seen by employees of the accounting section of the Home Office that the Council of Four were sincere in trying to determine assets and liability, or the total situation of CFC's financial state, several of them - on their own - began to submit documents that they believed would be of valuable use. It seemed that many documents had been deliberately kept until the day would come when the truth, indeed, would set them free.

The results of the financial inventory has been kept from the general membership. They are being kept secret to save the face of individuals concerned, leaders and council members of CFC who used, misused, and abused the tithes collected from the general membership. The struggle to spare the reputation and feelings of guilty parties won over the need for the truth to be known. The sensitive and damning documents remain in boxes which CFC members and leaders, except for a very few, are not allowed to see and inspect.

The little that has been revealed is just the dire financial situation of CFC, its virtual bankruptcy. Over the years of Frank and Gerry Padilla's conjugal rule of CFC, there had been no need for an accounting to the general membership. After all, tithes are God's money, and Frank is accountable only to God. A private letter was given to Lachie Agana, containing, it is rumored, a list of "lapses" he had committed as far as the use of money was concerned. It is also rumored that the list is not even complete because it was not meant to bring out the whole truth to the light, only to correct a brother according to the culture of the community. However, in any other organization, those "lapses," it is rumored, can send a person to jail or, at the very list, serve as a blacklist of his lack of honesty and integrity for life.

Again, it is rumored that CFC owes banks and individuals a whopping 25 million pesos. While it is not being rumored, not yet anyway, that Maribel Descallar or Lachie Agana had stolen money from CFC, there is much talk of abuse, of the gray line between what is personal and what is official. There is also much talk of how the favored ones, especially among full-time workers, are made to travel abroad as their gift for their loyalty - to the conjugal rule of Frank and Gerry Padilla and their heir apparent, Xavy Padilla. There is also much talk about other travel, hotels and meals, not only for favored officials of CFC, but including their families. Many times, these expenses are loaded, or padded, to the costs of CFC events.

I am sorry that you have to be content with rumors. There is a way, though, to be more precise. If Frank and Gerry Padilla, Maribel Descallar and Lachie Agana get touchy with mere rumors, they can always ask the Council to reveal all the documents to all the members of CFC. As Frank is very fond of saying, and now echoed by Nonong Contreras who used to be very vocal about the way CFC finances were being badly managed, "Let the truth set us free!"

B. Aris

For more, please refer to this comment posted in another entry.