CHAPTER I.

THE STATE AND ITS ELEMENTS

Overview

This chapter elaborates on the definition and concepts of the state and its elements. It also
discusses the theories of how the state was formulated. This also contains discussions about the
government, citizenship, territory and sovereignty.

Learning Objectives:

At the end of the unit, I am able to:

1. appreciate the terms and concepts use in the discussion of state and government;
2. explain some theories on the formation of the state;
3. enumerate and explain the elements of the state;
4. differentiate the powers of the state and government;
5. define the political meaning of government;
6. identify the kinds and forms of government in terms of the political system;
7. discuss the forms of government in the terms of the relationship between the executive and
legislative organs of government;
8. define citizenship;
9. enumerate the citizens of the Philippines; and
10. familiarize themselves with the modes of acquiring territory.

Setting Up

Name: _____________________________ Date: ____________________

Course/Year/Section: ______________ Score: ___________________

Directions: Analyze the passage below from inquirer.net and answer the following questions right
after the passage.

MANILA, Philippines — While facing increasing pressure to revisit his West

Philippine Sea policy in his own country, President Rodrigo Duterte has
earned praises in the opinion section of a state-published newspaper in
China. (Mangosing, 2019)

Lesson Proper

Theories on the Formation of State

The state is a political entity which has its own characteristics as an independent nation.
The theories on how did it start are still on search. However, Professor Hector de Leon identifies
several theories concerning the origin of states. Among which are:
Divine Right Theory – believes that the state is the creation of God therefore the power comes
from the Supreme Being.
Necessity or Force Theory – continuous battles between tribes resulted in the subjugation of the
weaker tribe placing it under the government of the stronger tribes.
Paternalistic Theory – the state is a natural phenomenon brought about by increasing number of
population originating from the same family. It is headed by the father and the eldest among family
members.
Social Contract Theory – a state is a creation of a covenant to end the restless and violent
condition of society. The state descended to the level of citizens by imposing upon itself the duty to
protect and promote the general welfare and citizens to render habitual allegiance to the State and
its laws.
The Concept of State and its Elements
Do you think the Philippines is a state or a nation?
The concept of state is defined by James Garner in this link
https://www.coursehero.com/file/8105462/The-State/. Click and check out the link.

The state is composed of the four elements given in the link which are the territory,
government, people and sovereignty. Whenever there is a definite territory with a people ruled by a
government and with sovereignty, it is already considered a state.
The concept of State is different from the nation. A state is a political concept; a nation is an
ethnic one. A state may be composed of several nations while a nation may be composed of several
independent states.
A state has the following elements:
1. Territory – it is a fixed portion inhabited by the people of the state which includes the land,
air, and water. The Philippine territory is embraced in the first article of the 1987
Constitution.
2. Government – the machinery of the state to carry out its will over its subjects.
3. People – the state is a human institution, without the people there will be no one to govern.
4. Sovereignty – it’s the state’s supreme power. It is the totality of powers such as police
power, power of eminent domain, power of taxation, legislative power, executive and
judicial power which the state may exercise for the good and body polity.

One of the elements of the state in the territory. It is a fixed portion of the surface of the
earth inhabited by the people of the state. The Philippine territory is embraced in the first article of
the 1987 Constitution.
The Philippines is an archipelago. The UN Convention on the Law of the Sea defines and the
archipelagic state as a “state made up wholly of one or more archipelagos,” and may include other
islands including parts of islands and it describes an archipelago as a group of islands,
interconnecting waters and other natural highlights which are intently between related that such
islands, waters and natural highlights structure a natural geological, monetary and political
element, or which verifiably and historically have been viewed accordingly.
 The government is the second element of the state. The government of the Philippines
refers to the corporate body through which the functions of government are exercised including the
various machineries use to exercise political authority whether central, provincial and municipal. It
can be defined into the manner as government as administration and government as
structure/machinery.
The government can be divided into three forms. First, is the government ruled by one
person. It is either a monarchy or autocracy. It is a monarchy when the state is ruled by a member
of the nobility ordinarily addressed as queen, king, emperor and the like. When the interests of the
ruler shift from the welfare of his people to his personal or selfish interest, it becomes dictatorship
or autocratic. Second is the government ruled by a few. It is either aristocracy or oligarchy. It is
created when the state is ruled by the members of the elite class, or those persons belonging to the
top of the social strata. Lastly, we have the government ruled by many. It is a form of government
ruled by the representatives of the people or the people themselves. The people under this form of
government believe in certain principles of governance that are present in all democratic
governments.
Another element of the state is people. The membership in a political community that is
characterized as personal and more or less perpetual in character is known as citizenship. The
people who are natural born citizens are the ones who from birth gained their citizenship without
having to perform any act to acquire it. Citizenship by marriage, a Filipino woman who marries an
alien retains their Philippine citizenship. In the case of an alien woman who marries a Filipino
citizen needs to be naturalized to acquire Philippine citizenship. The other topics on citizenship
will be discussed on Chapter VI of this module.
Last among the elements of the state is the sovereignty. In the constitution, it resides in the
people. It is the totality of powers such as police power, power of eminent domain, power of
taxation, legislative power, executive power and judicial power which the state may exercise for the
good of body polity. It is the right to exercise the functions of a state to the exclusion of other states.
Sovereignty is absolute, comprehensive, permanent and indivisible. It is absolute because
no other power can place the people of a territory to obey orders and regulatory policies of the
state except the one vested with sovereign power. It is also comprehensive because the laws or
authority of the sovereign power applies to all the people within its territory. The only exception is
by virtue of diplomatic immunity where a person is spared from the exercise of legal authority of
the State. Sovereignty is also characterized as permanent considering that it cannot be removed
from the state. Government may change but the state is still entitled to it for no independent state
can exist without sovereign power. It is an inherent element of the state. Lastly, sovereignty is
indivisible. It is not subject to division or its exercise being granted to two or more persons or
entities.
The supreme authority to govern is a monopoly of the state. It cannot be granted with both
states at the same time.
Sovereignty can also be internal or external sovereignty. Internal sovereignty is the power
to control and direct the internal affairs of a country such as the authority to enact or execute and
apply laws. While the external sovereignty is the power of an independent state to control and
directs its external affairs such as the authority to enter into treaties with other state, to renounce
war and to gain or give diplomacy.