What You Can Do This Lent: Featuring the Tagakolu Tribe

We traversed a river to get to Sitio Matamis, Malita, Davao Occidental to talk to the Tagakolu tribe, particularly two indigenous teachers whom we consulted together with the Missionaries of Jesus who run two indigenous schools. We were proposing to put up an internet facility via satellite to help them with their internet needs.

It is in our consultation and conversation with them that I discovered that these two schools are threatened by red-tagging and the effort of the Department of Education to streamline all curriculum, without considering the uniqueness of each tribe’s culture and history. The IP curriculum preserves, protects and passes on their identity to the next generation.

In this episode of Kape’t Pandasal, I would like to bring awareness to the situation of our IPs in the growing oppression by the military.

The following is a transcription of the video below.

Mayroon ka bang malasakit sa ating mga kapatid nating katutubo? Para sa mabungang-buhay, tayo na po’t magkape’t pandasal.

Nandito po ako sa Sitio Matamis, Demoloc, Malita, Davao Occidental. Malayo po ito sa kabihasnan at tumawid po kami sa ilog bago makarating dito. Dito po naninirahan ang ating mga kapatid nating mga tagakolu. Makakausap natin ngayon ang dalawang guro ng Tagakolu Mission School at malalaman natin kay Ate Matet Gonzalo at Kuya Helbert Pamat ang minimithi ng kanilang sariling tribu.

“I hope for the preservation and growth of our culture, on which the life of our future generation will be based.”

Matet Gonzalo, Tagakolu Teacher.

“I hope for the continuity of indigenous education; that the Malita Tagakolu Mission continues to help the two Indigenous People’s schools for the future generation.”

Helbert Pamat, Tagakulo Teacher.

Kung titingnan natin, ang mga mithiin nating lahat ay iisa, ang tamang edukasyon. Sa kasalukuyan, malaki ang hamon ukol sa pagpapatuloy ng IP education.

Tinuturo ng ating pananampalataya sa Panahon ng Kuwaresma ang buksan ang ating puso sa mga nangangailangan tulad ng mga nasa laylayan ng ating lipunan.

Manalangin tayo: O Diyos, nawa’y isabuhay namin ang diwa ng Kuwaresma sa pamamagitan ng pagtulong sa aming kapwa. Amen.