Political Influence
Some believe that El Shaddai plays a major role in Philippine politics. They assert that former President Fidel Ramos won the 1992 Presidential elections because of El Shaddai's votes, although this has never been corroborated with an actual tally of votes correlated with El Shaddai membership rosters. Some counter this claim as well by stating that El Shaddai members vote independently.
During the impeachment trial of deposed President Joseph Estrada, Velarde rejected the call of then Archbishop Jaime Cardinal Sin to join a prayer rally urging Estrada to resign. Velarde said that El Shaddai members were free to join the rally of their own volition and reiterated that the movement was neither for nor against Estrada's resignation.
In 2005, it was reported that Velarde attempted to end a Philippine electoral crisis by reuniting the Estrada camp and Arroyo camp.
Read more about this topic: El Shaddai (movement)
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“Reason is a faculty far larger than mere objective force. When either the political or the scientific discourse announces itself as the voice of reason, it is playing God, and should be spanked and stood in the corner.”
—Ursula K. Le Guin (b. 1929)
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