PRELIM TOPIC OUTLINE FOUNDATIONS OF POLITICAL SCIENCE

CHAPTER 3: THE STATE AND ITS ELEMENTS

STATE DEFINED

 There are two (2) primary characteristics of the state, an abstract and a concrete
person. As an abstract or a concept, it is a juridical entity or rather a fictitious person. As
a concrete person, it is the people, territory, the government through which the people
express their collective will and execute their supreme act.
 “A community of people/persons more or less numerous, occupying permanently a
definite portion of a given territory, possessing a government of their own to whom the
great body of inhabitants render habitual obedience, and is free from internal and
external control”.

THE FOUR (4) ELEMENTS OF THE STATE

 People - it refers to the population or the inhabitants.

- The aggregate of living persons in the community (Bentham).
- A partnership not only between those alive but including the dead and those not yet
born (Burke).
- Not just a collection of living persons, it is a stream of individuals, the connected
generations of changing persons, because “people” is a corporation or an entity
which lives on while individuals come and go out of it (Lippman).
- No specific number of people is needed. More or less numerous meant that not too
less to be incapable of maintaining independent existence or performing duties and
obligations of a regular state nor shall it be too large that it is incapable of being
governed effectively.
- No specific kind or quality of people is needed. Modern social conditions dictate that
the people should at least be literate to be productive and able to maintain an
independent statehood.
- Unity of the people us needed. Pervasive unity should be present, the population
united by common origin, custom, tradition, religion, territory, interests, language,
and a symbol of national authority to promote social stability.
 Nationals & Citizens: The two (2) major groups in a state are called nationals &
citizens. In political science, nationality is ethnical in concept, while citizenship is
political. Hence a national may not be a citizen and a citizen may not be a national of a
state. A national is a person who owes allegiance to the state and in return enjoys civil
right whereas a citizen is a person who owes allegiance to the state and in return
enjoys civil & political rights.
 Citizens of the Philippines: Under Section 1, Article 4 of our 1987 Philippine
Constitution, the following are Filipino Citizens;
1. Those who are citizens of the Philippines at the time of the adoption of this
Constitution;
2. Those whose fathers or mothers are citizens of the Philippines;
3. Those born before January 17, 1973, of Filipino mothers who elect Philippine
citizenship upon reaching the age of majority;
4. Those who are naturalized in accordance with law.

 Territory – it refers to that portion of the earth’s surface within which the people of the
state inhabit of occupy to establish their abode and make a living.
- No specific kind, type, quality, or size indicated or required for statehood.
 - More than enough that such territory can provide for the resources or needs of its
inhabitants for them to thrive and survive.
- Territory of the State comprises of its terrestrial (land), fluvial & maritime (water),
and aerial (air).
- Indicators may be borders for land and water, though its more concrete with land.
Airspace for air. (re: Art. 1 1987 Philippine Constitution).

 Government – defined as the institution or aggregate of institutions by which an

independent society makes and carries out the rules of actions necessary to enable men
to live in a social state.
- Mechanism or machinery made up of people themselves through which the ideals,
goals, and objectives of the populace are made into reality.
- It upholds a claim to the exclusive regulation of the legitimate use of physical force
in enforcing its rules within a given territorial area.
- No specific type of government needed for statehood.
- There’s no such thing as a perfect government, what makes it perfect is the fact that
such government works for the best interest of the people and the people
themselves support it.

 Sovereignty – the supreme legal power to enforce and command obedience within the
territorial jurisdiction of the state.
- Sovereignty resides in the people or the citizens of the state.
- It is lodged with the rule making body of the state (Legislative Department/Congress).
- Laws are the ultimate manifestation of sovereign power by the state.
 Characteristics of Sovereignty: 1) Absolute Power, 2) Universal Power, 3) Perpetual
Power, 4) Indivisible Power, and 5) Inalienable Power.
 Legal and Political Sovereignty: Legal sovereignty is the delegated power from the
people to the government officials, it is the authority to act for and in behalf of the
people. Political sovereignty is people power, power that is innate or inborn, it is
never lost nor transferred. It is the will of the masses of citizens to determine the
person or persons who will exercise the powers of the government. Legal sovereignty
is highly dependent on Political sovereignty since the will of the masses gives rise to
governmental powers.
 Sovereignty and Independence: From the dual aspect of sovereignty we have
internal and external sovereignty. Internal sovereignty is equated with the supreme
legal power of the state to control or manage its domestic affairs. External
sovereignty is equated with “Independence”, the right of every state to carry on its
conduct of activities and relations with other states in the international community.
 Concept of Nation, Society, State, and Government: most of time such terminology
is considered interchangeable, but each term is distinct from the other.
- Nation – People who possess a sense of unity because of common race,
language, religion, political traditions and experiences.
- Society – Aggregate of men living together in a given territory and united by
mutual interests and the same pattern of relationship.
- State – The established supreme authority to which all the people must render
general obedience.
- Government – The instrumentality through which the superior authority makes
and carries out its will.