LEARNING MATERIALS IN

PHILIPPINE POLITICS, GOVERNANCE AND CITIZENSHIP

Prof. Cherry de Leon-Generoso

LESSON 3 – Philippines Institutions: The Constitution, the Legislative

OVERVIEW:
This lesson focuses on the foundation of Philippine government, the
Constitution and the first branch of the Philippines government, the
Legislative.
Watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-eAeTGFuwuc

OBJECTIVES:
1. To give students the constitutional grounding of the Philippine political
institutions within the government
2. To show the historical development of the Legislative branch and give
an overview of its structure and powers.

COURSE MATERIALS:
Read Article VI: The Legislative Department
http://hrlibrary.umn.edu/research/Philippines/PHILIPPINE%20CONSTITUTI
ON.pdf
Watch 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WkgVuBT0mLU
Watch 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iF6ukYYbG0U

1. What is Constitution?
- “It is a written instrument by which the fundamental powers of
government are established, limited and defined and by which
these powers are distributed among several departments for their
safe and useful exercise for the benefit of the body politic.” –
Justice Miller, US Supreme Court

2. What is the nature and purpose?

2.1 Serves as the supreme or fundamental law.
o It is the Charter creating the government.
o It is binding to all individual citizens and all organs of the
government.
o It is the law to which all other laws must confirm.
o It is the test of the legality of all governmental actions.
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LEARNING MATERIALS IN
PHILIPPINE POLITICS, GOVERNANCE AND CITIZENSHIP
Prof. Cherry de Leon-Generoso

2.2 Establishes the basic framework of the system of government,

and underlying principles of government.
o Prescribes the permanent framework of the system of
government, an assigns to the different department or
branches, their respective powers and duties. (Art. I)
o To establish certain basic principles on which the
government is founded. (Preamble, Art. I)
o Designed to preserve and protect the rights of the citizen
against the Powrs of the State. (Art. III)

3. What is Constitutional Law?

• It is defined as the branch of public law which deals with
constitution: their nature, formation, amendment, and
interpretation.
• It is also the law embodied in the Constitution as well as the
principles growing out of the interpretation and application
made by the courts, specifically the Supreme Court.

4. What is the typology of Constitution?

Constitution may be classified as follows:
4.1 As to origin and history:
a. Conventional or enacted – one which is enacted by a
constituent assembly or granted by a monarch to his subjects (
e.g. Constitution of Japan)
b. Cumulative of evolved – one which is a product of a long period
of development originating in customs, traditions, judicial
decisions etc, rather than from deliberate and formal
enactment. (e.g. English Constitution)

4.2 As to form:
a. Written Constitution – one which has been given definite form
at a particular time, usually by a specially constituted authority
called a “constitutional convention” or “constitutional
commission”.
b. Unwritten Constitution – one which is entirely a product of
political evolution consisting largely of a mass of customs,
usages and judicial decisions.
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LEARNING MATERIALS IN
PHILIPPINE POLITICS, GOVERNANCE AND CITIZENSHIP
Prof. Cherry de Leon-Generoso

4.3 As to manner of amending them:

a. Rigid or inelastic – one regarded as a document of special
sanctity, which cannot be amended or altered except by some
special machinery other than ordinary legislative process.
b. Flexible or elastic – one which possesses no higher legal
authority than ordinary laws and which may be altered in the
same way as other laws.

5. What is Preamble?
• From Latin “preambulare” which means “to walk before”.
• It is an introduction to the main subject.
• It is the prologue of the constitution.

Watch Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UhF0nNmwRFY

For more info click: https://www.slideshare.net/princekurt11/philippine-
constitution-15452864

The Constitution of the Philippines (Filipino: Saligang Batas ng

Pilipinas or Konstitusyon ng Pilipinas, Spanish: Constitución de la
República de Filipinas) is the constitution or supreme law of the Republic of
the Philippines. Its final draft was completed by the Constitutional
Commission on October 12, 1986 and was ratified by a nationwide
plebiscite on February 2, 1987.

Three other constitutions have effectively governed the country in its

history: the 1935 Commonwealth Constitution, the 1973 Constitution, and
the 1986 Freedom Constitution.
The earliest constitution establishing a "Philippine Republic", the
1899 Malolos Constitution, was never fully implemented throughout the
Philippines and did not establish a state that was internationally
recognized, due in great part to the eruption of the Philippine–American
War following its adoption.

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LEARNING MATERIALS IN
PHILIPPINE POLITICS, GOVERNANCE AND CITIZENSHIP
Prof. Cherry de Leon-Generoso

The government of the Philippines (Filipino: pamahalaan ng Pilipinas) is

the national government of the Philippines. It is governed as unitary
state under a presidential representative and democratic and
a constitutional republic where the President functions as both the head of
state and the head of government of the country within a pluriform multi-
party system.

The government has three interdependent branches: the legislative branch,

the executive branch, and the judicial branch. The powers of the branches
are vested by the Constitution of the Philippines in the following: Legislative
power is vested in the two-chamber Congress of the Philippines—
the Senate is the upper chamber and the House of Representatives is the
lower chamber.[1]

Executive power is exercised by the government under the leadership of

the President. Judicial power is vested in the courts with the Supreme
Court of the Philippines as the highest judicial body.

Watch Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YKnuG38QYIw

LEGISLATIVE POWER
Watch Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pmjosgipKOs
The Legislative Branch enacts legislation, confirms or rejects Presidential
appointments, and has the authority to declare war. This branch includes
Congress (the Senate and House of Representatives) and several
agencies that provide support services to Congress.

• Senate – The Senate shall be composed of twenty-four Senators who

shall be elected at large by the qualified voters of the Philippines, as
may be provided by law.
• House of Representatives – The House of Representatives shall be
composed of not more than two hundred and fifty members, unless
otherwise fixed by law, who shall be elected from legislative districts
apportioned among the provinces, cities, and the Metropolitan Manila
area in accordance with the number of their respective inhabitants,

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LEARNING MATERIALS IN
PHILIPPINE POLITICS, GOVERNANCE AND CITIZENSHIP
Prof. Cherry de Leon-Generoso

and on the basis of a uniform and progressive ratio, and those who,
as provided by law, shall be elected through a party-list system of
registered national, regional, and sectoral parties or organizations.

The party-list representatives shall constitute twenty per cent of the total
number of representatives including those under the party list. For three
consecutive terms after the ratification of this Constitution, one-half of the
seats allocated to party-list representatives shall be filled, as provided by
law, by selection or election from the labor, peasant, urban poor,
indigenous cultural communities, women, youth, and such other sectors as
may be provided by law, except the religious sector.

The current President of the Senate is Vicente Sotto, III, while the
current Speaker of the House of Representatives is Alan Peter Cayetano.
Legislative power:
National government
• Senate
• House of Representatives
Local government
• Sangguniang Panlalawigan
• Regional Legislative Assembly
• Sangguniang Panlungsod
• Sangguniang Bayan
• Sangguniang Barangay

REFERENCE:
“Constitution of the Philippines.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 27 July
2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constitution_of_the_Philippines.
Exec. Order No. 1987-292 Book II Chapter 1 Section 1 (July 25, 1987;
in English) President of the Philippines. Retrieved on November 21, 2015
“Government of the Philippines.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 27 July
2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Government_of_the_Philippines#cite_note-1.

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LEARNING MATERIALS IN
PHILIPPINE POLITICS, GOVERNANCE AND CITIZENSHIP
Prof. Cherry de Leon-Generoso

Limon, Melvin. “Philippine Constitution.” LinkedIn SlideShare, 2 Dec. 2012,

www.slideshare.net/princekurt11/philippine-constitution-15452864.
“Three Branches of Government.” PIA News, 2020, pia.gov.ph/branches-
of-govt.https://pia.gov.ph/branches-of-govt

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