Manila (AsiaNews) – The civil society group People’s Initiative Coalition Against Dynasty (Picad), supported by the Philippine Church, launched an online petition campaign on 30 September 2026 as part of the “Dapat Isa Lang” (“Only one is allowed”) initiative, in an attempt to put an end to political dynasties in the Philippines.
Bishop Ayuban: “Institutional posts are not family heirlooms”
At the launch event at the Bishop’s Palace in Cubao, Quezon City, Bishop Elias Lubayog Ayuban stated that the petition drive is not directed against any political party, family or politician. It aims to examine how political power has become concentrated in the hands of the elite or political families over the decades. The initiative – an official digital platform aimed at securing the passage of the Anti-Political Dynasties Act – offers eligible voters a secure, accessible and verifiable way to sign up.
“Institutional offices must never become a family inheritance. They are public offices entrusted to the people,” the bishop declared. According to the bishop, the initiative does not tell voters who to vote for. At the same time, the Church inspires and informs people to vote according to their conscience, ensuring responsible participation in political life for the common good and sincere public service. “Political participation is part of our responsibility for the common good,” emphasised Ayuban.
The Bishop of Cubao stated that the campaign aims to enable voters to correctly understand the concept of public service, which is fundamentally a mandate entrusted to them, not inherited. The petition seeks to enact a national law limiting the possibility for members of the same family to hold elective public office simultaneously or one immediately after the other — thereby fulfilling the mandate of Article II, Section 26 of the 1987 Philippine Constitution.
Pressure from the Supreme Court
The Picad campaign follows the Supreme Court’s ruling of 16 September, which ordered Congress, in compliance with its constitutional duty, to enact a law restricting political dynasties. The Supreme Court noted that Congress had failed to enact the mandatory law against political dynasties for the past 39 years. The Supreme Court highlighted the persistence of political dynasties despite repeated bills being tabled over numerous legislative sessions and suggested that a possible lack of interest, convenience or personal interest might underlie this prolonged inaction.
On 25 September, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) issued a statement in support of the “Dapat Isa Lang” initiative, stating that political dynasties have been a moral and ethical concern in the country for decades. “Public office must never become a family inheritance; it is a public trust entrusted by the people to serve everyone,” the CBCP stated.
The movement hopes to collect at least 7 million signatures – equivalent to 10 per cent of the country’s registered voters – for the proposed citizens’ initiative, according to PICAD coordinator Eirene Aguila. According to Aguila, the campaign is a digital platform designed to help people exercise their constitutional power responsibly. It is not a form of rebellion, but rather democracy in its most peaceful form: “In a popular initiative, we are not merely voters. We help shape the law.”
A phenomenon rooted at national and local levels
Fr Robert Reyes, coordinator of Clergy for Good Governance and a human rights activist, stated that the “Dapat Isa Lang” initiative, launched on 7 May, offers Filipinos a better opportunity to bring the law against political dynasties into force through a popular initiative. Currently, 83 per cent of the country’s senators and around 80 per cent of the members of the House of Representatives come from political families; 87 per cent of provincial governors and 75 per cent of mayors come from political dynasties.
Political dynasties are a widespread phenomenon throughout the country. In many places, politics has become one of the most lucrative family businesses. A municipality, a town, an entire province, and sometimes even a region, can end up under the control of a single political clan. One member is governor, another is mayor, yet another sits in Congress, whilst relatives hold other elected offices. When their terms of office expire, they swap roles or hand over the post to another family member
This is where political dynasties and patronage politics reinforce one another. When a family remains in power for long enough, the civil service can easily turn into a system of personal favours and debts of gratitude. Public sector jobs, contracts, permits, scholarships, financial aid and access to public resources can begin to appear as favours granted by politicians rather than as services to which citizens are entitled. The longer such a system exists, the more difficult it becomes for ordinary people – who lack money, a network of contacts or a famous surname – to enter the civil service.
Around 90 per cent of the population lives in areas often dominated and controlled by a political dynasty, says political economist Ronald Mendoza, former dean of the Ateneo School of Government. The dominant political dynasty prevailing in the provinces becomes fertile ground for acting with impunity, embezzling public funds, making threats, buying votes, receiving kickbacks from all infrastructure projects and abusing their positions, argues Mendoza.
“I wholeheartedly welcome the CBCP’s pastoral statement in support of the ‘Dapat Isa Lang’ people’s initiative,” said Michael Castro, a social worker. “This campaign is not directed against families, political parties, candidates or public officials. It is about changing a system.” The time has come for the country to enact a new law that excludes one political family and removes another, but which opens the doors of public service to a greater number of people, he observed, recalling that public office is not a family inheritance. It is a position of public trust.
