The Catholic faithful is stepping into one of the country’s most contested national conversations not to take a side, but to teach its faithful how to think it through. On 10 October, Team Pinas and UNLAD Pinas bring TAPAT DAPAT: Tapat sa Bayan, Dapat May Pananagutan, a national faith, truth, and accountability caravan, to Santa Rosa, Laguna, inviting Catholic communities in Santa Rosa to examine the Senate impeachment trial and other pressing national issues through the lens of Catholic social teaching.
TAPAT DAPAT is built on a conviction that faith does not end within the walls of the Church. At a time when the country is confronted with serious questions involving public trust, integrity, accountability, and the exercise of constitutional powers, the caravan positions Catholic parishes and dioceses as spaces for reflection grounded in truth, conscience, justice, and the common good not as partisan political venues, but as communities equipped with facts and perspective to form their own judgments.
The caravan is anchored on five pillars that intersect Catholic Social Teaching with civics: Dignidad ng Tao (Human Dignity), Kabutihang Panlahat (The Common Good), Pakikilahok (Participation), Pananagutan at Mabuting Pangangasiwa (Stewardship and Accountability), and Pagkakaisa at Pakikipagkapwa (Solidarity).
The program opens with TAPAT SA BAYAN, a values-centered discussion on integrity in public office and the stewardship of public trust, before moving into its principal session, DAPAT MAY PANANAGUTAN: Understanding the Impeachment, which walks participants through the constitutional purpose and process of impeachment, the principal allegations and defenses, and the implications of accountability for democratic institutions, carefully distinguishing established facts from allegations, contested claims, and matters still for adjudication.
The heart of the caravan is an open forum, Tanong. Linaw. Paninindigan, where participants can directly question speakers, challenge arguments, and clarify misinformation in a moderated discussion, a format organizers say reflects the caravan’s core belief that an informed faith community is also a more engaged citizenry.
“We are not turning our churches into political venues. We are reminding our communities that accountability begins with the self, and that conscience, truth, and the common good are not abstract values. They are Catholic values that demand we pay attention to how power is exercised in our name,” said Atty. Dino de Leon.
The caravan closes with Mula Pananampalataya Tungo sa Pananagutan, a call to action and closing reflection on responsible citizenship, anchored by the Panalangin para sa Katotohanan at Pananagutan (Prayer for Truth and Accountability). Organizers have proposed parish and diocese-wide follow-through activities, including a parish-wide prayer for truth and accountability and a tambayanan session with Bantay Senado, Team Pinas’ ongoing initiative monitoring the impeachment trial.
TAPAT DAPAT is part of a broader national push by Team Pinas, a network anchored by leaders from OCTA Research, Momentum Research, and the Philippine Society for Public Administration, with ongoing collaborations with the Catholic Educational Association of the Philippines (CEAP) to connect credible research and public education with Catholic communities and civic life nationwide.
