Philippines Church Launches Green Agenda Electoral Scorecard and Forum in Oriental Mindoro province

The Diocesan Social Action Center (DSAC) of the Apostolic Vicariate of Calapan in Oriental Mindoro, Philippines, is launching the Green Agenda Electoral Scorecard and organizing the Green Agenda Electoral Forum for provincial candidates.

“We continue the mission of promoting good governance and electoral integrity through its Voters’ Education Campaign and collaboration with the parishes,” said Fr. Edwin Gariguez, director of DSAC.

“These efforts empower communities to make informed choices and uphold responsible and meaningful elections. We hope to encourage informed decision-making and promote leaders committed to upholding a pro-poor agenda, sustainable development, integral ecology, and the common good,” he said in a statement on social media on April 3.

The statement is entitled “Philippines Church Advocates for Responsible Voting and Environmental Governance in Oriental Mindoro..

As part of its commitment to social transformation, the Green Agenda Electoral Scorecard, in partnership with Caritas Philippines and CEED (Center for Energy, Ecology, and Development), will be distributed to parishes and communities as a guide for responsible voting.

“By using this tool, we hope to help voters assess candidates’ positions on pressing environmental issues such as mining, fossil fuel dependency, climate justice, and Indigenous rights,” said Gariguez.

To provide a platform for provincial candidates to present their positions on urgent environmental and energy issues affecting Oriental Mindoro, the Green Agenda Electoral Forum will be held and aired live on DZSB 104.1 Spirit FM on May 1, 2025, featuring discussions with candidates for key provincial positions.

“Key issues to be discussed include mining, fossil fuel dependence, power price volatility, marine protection, deforestation, indigenous rights, and climate emergency response—all of which are critical to the future of our province and its people,” said the statement.

“Through these electoral advocacies, we hope to amplify the Church’s advocacy for integral ecology and responsible governance, in line with the social teachings of the Church and Laudato Si,” it said.

Gariguez said, “The 2025 elections are not merely political exercises but moral opportunities to elect leaders who embody moral integrity, servant-leadership, and ecological justice.”

His office urged all parishes, organizations, and individuals to participate in voter education sessions, volunteer as part of the National Citizens' Movement for Free Elections, use the Green Agenda scorecard to scrutinize candidates, pray, and act for a peaceful, ethical, and transformative electoral process.

“If we are what we are today—a country with a very great number of poor and powerless people—one reason is the way we have allowed politics to be debased and prostituted to the low level it is in now,” said Gariguez, citing the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, Pastoral Exhortation on Philippine Politics, September 16, 1997.