FAQs on Change politics campaign and a song for social change

Lyrics: Fr. Albert E. Alejo S.J. Composer: Dodgie Fernandez


Frequently Asked Questions about Change Politics Movement:

1. What is change politics?

It is the practice of politics guided by the following principles:

1. Transparency and honesty
2. Protection and respect of human rights
3. Service to the people and the public good
4. Democracy and civic engagement
5. Solidarity and the common good
6. The right to self determination and equal rights of the poor and the marginalized
7. Protects patrimony and sovereignty


2. What is the purpose of the movement?

The purpose is to develop active leadership among the people; especially the marginalized, that they understand the meaning and embrace the practice of self-determination and people empowerment. Another objective of the movement is to mobilize the people in time for next year’s national elections, that the polls be free from the malpractices and pitfalls of traditional politics that paralyze national freedom and development.


3. What is the political alignment of the movement?

The movement is aligned with no party, and no organization. It is a movement purely driven by the people and in service of the people.


4. What does the movement expect from the people?

The people are expected to be vigilant and fearless. The people are expected to be active in minding and upholding what they believe is the common good; that they demand transparency and accountability from the government and those who are involved in the polls. People can accomplish these by doing the following:

o Organize “pulong-bahays” in your neighborhood or place of work to discuss Change Politics
o Write about Change Politics, its purpose and principles and then e-mail it or post it on your local bulletin board, newsletter, newspaper, blog or social network account.
o Convene a meeting of at least 20 people in your municipality or province to plan and be the core group of the Change Politics organization in your area.
o And initiate activities with the core group/s such as:
+ Check the voters’ registration list with COMELEC and request COMELEC to explain the automated polls now, not on January 10, 2010.
+ Organize and declare barangays into vote-buying free zones by identifying and mapping vulnerable areas/barangay to vote buying.
+ Educate individuals, families, friends, neighbors and colleagues on active citizenship and accountable leadership.
+ Conduct “ramdam” surveys, getting a feel of the community, seeing who can effectively represent change politics in your community starting with the recruits your core group mobilizes.
+ Encourage, conduct and participate in dialogues and discussions on Change Politics; determine officers, solicit pledges of commitments and responsibilities from each.
+ Organize the assembly that will choose the Change Politics candidates at the national and local level.

5. What the movement IS and IS NOT.

The movement is not a political party; it is a trans-partisan organization. It is not campaign machinery for any candidate nor is it a campaign movement for the 2010 elections. It is a platform for active citizenship, to ensure that accountable leadership will sit in office at the national and local levels. The vision of the movement is to ensure that transformative politics be the norm and prevailing, dominant culture by the year 2022.


6. What motivated the inception of the movement?

Development workers and community organizers who have given at least 15 years of their lives to people empowerment and social change realize that for the marginalized to have access to power, they themselves must change politics. Patronage and transactional politics have been the barriers to genuine poverty reduction and people empowerment. Most civil society organizations in the past hesitated to get involved in politics because it has been seen to be dominated by greedy and self-serving individuals who are corrupt and believe that they are not going to get caught and punished by state authorities because they are in power. However, today, there is a growing realization that there is a need to take back politics from these corrupt politicians and make politics the sacred covenant that it is meant to be --- between the leaders and the citizens. Civil society leaders see the need to change politics so that the principles and practice of politics will bring positive change to governance and society as a whole. There is a need for civil society to engage the political society and influence it to do good governance and democratic politics.