MANILA, Feb. 22, 2010— Catholic bishops are calling for the resignation of a ranking health official who last week blamed the Church for the rising cases of HIV/AIDS in the country.

Lipa Archbishop Ramon Arguelles, Bishops Arturo Bastes of Sorsogon and Dinualdo Gutierrez of Marbel said it is astonishing that a government official would publicly impose immorality.

The prelates said Department of Health Secretary Esperanza Cabral’s strong promotion on the use of condoms should disqualify her from public service.

“It’s so immoral for someone in the government to be pushing the use of condoms which we all know is not deterrent to AIDS prevention,” Arguelles said over Church-run Radyo Veritas.

He said that with Cabral in the DOH, “it’s worrying because it is the morality in society, especially among the youth, that is at stake.”

According to Bastes, condoms will never solve the spread of HIV. On the contrary, he said, it increases the problem.

The prelate reiterated the church’s position that a “responsible and moral attitude” toward sex would help fight the disease.

The Church officials campaigned fidelity in marriage and abstinence from premarital and extramarital sex as key weapons in the fight against AIDS.

Gutierrez, also chided the DOH secretary for pushing condom use as solution to the spread of HIV.

Cabral earlier pointed her finger on the Catholic hierarchy for the government’s failure to stem the rising HIV/AIDS in the country.

She said the Church is blocking the government campaign to prevent the spread of the disease by having people use condoms. (CBCPNews)