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FREEDOM CONSTITUTION (1986) Proclamation No. 3 March 25, 1986 Following the EDSA People Power Revolution that removed President Ferdinand E. Marcos from office, the new President, Corazon C. Aquino issued Proclamation No. 3 as a provisional constitution. It adopted certain provisions from the 1973 constitution and granted the President broad powers to reorganize the government and remove officials from office, and mandated that the president would appoint a commission to draft a new constitution. Pres. Aquino immediately issued Proclamation No. 3 promulgating the 1986 Constitution also called Freedom Constitution to operate her government with a legitimate constitution and evade the 1973 Constitution. The PROCLAMATION NO. 3 Constitution was its name Freedom yet it was paradox of Freedom without ratification of the people, and promulgated under the Revolutionary DECLARING A NATIONAL POLICY TO IMPLEMENT THE REFORMS Government. MANDATED BY THE PEOPLE, PROTECTING THEIR BASIC RIGHTS,

ADOPTING A PROVISIONAL CONSTITUTION, AND PROVIDING FOR AN ORDERLY TRANSITION TO A GOVERNMENT UNDER A NEW CONSTITUTION.

WHEREAS, the new government was installed through a direct exercise of the power of the Filipino people assisted by units of the New Armed Forces of the Philippines; WHEREAS, the heroic action of the people was done in defiance of the provisions of the 1973 Constitution, as amended;

This pragraph declared that the power of the government is bestowed back to the people restoring democracy, and that the sovereign power of the government was the people, and it was a Revolutionary Government. This pragraph asserted the defiance of the people against 1973 Constitution, hence, the urgency of promulgation of a temporary constitution.

WHEREAS, the direct mandate of the people as manifested by their extraordinary action demands the complete reorganization of the government, restoration of democracy, protection of basic rights, rebuilding of confidence in the entire governmental system, eradication of graft and corruption, restoration of peace and order, maintenance of the supremacy of civilian authority over the military, and the transition to a government under a New Constitution in the shortest time possible; WHEREAS, during the period of transition to a New Constitution it must be guaranteed that the government will respect basic human rights and fundamental freedoms; WHEREFORE, I, CORAZON C. AQUINO, President of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested in me by the sovereign mandate of the people, do hereby promulgate the following Provisional Constitution: PROVISIONAL CONSTITUTION OF THE REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES ARTICLE I ARTICLE II ARTICLE ARTICLE ARTICLE ARTICLE ARTICLE III IV V VI VII ADOPTION OF CERTAIN PROVISIONS OF THE 1973 CONSTITUTION, AS AMENDED THE PRESIDENT, THE VICE-PRESIDENT, AND THE CABINET GOVERNMENT REORGANIZATION EXISTING LAWS ADOPTION OF A NEW CONSTITUTION HOLDING OF ELECTIONS EFFECTIVE DATE

This pragraph enumerated the reforms the Freedom Constitution assured; and promised of transition to a new government under a New Constitution.

This pragraph reiterated that protection and respect for basic human rights is the major concern of the 1986 Constitution and guaranteed that human rights violations would not happen again while the New Constitution is being drafted.

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1987 CONSTITUTION Proclamation No. 9 April 23, 1986 President Aquino later issued Proclamation No. 9, creating a Constitutional Commission composed of not more than 50 representatives (popularly abbreviated "Con Com" in the Philippines) Constitutional Commission Constitutional Commission was tasked to frame a new constitution to replace the 1973 Constitution which took effect during the Marcos martial law regime. 48 members; 42 men; 6 women June 2, 1986 Con Com convened at the Batasang Pambansa building in Diliman, Quezon City Working drafts: Malolos Constitution 1935 Constitution 1973 Constitution Oct. 12, 1986 Proposed Constitution was approved by the Constitutional Commission 109 page draft consisting of a preamble, 18 articles, 321 sections and about 2000 words Feb. 2, 1987 Ratified by the people in the plebiscite after a period of nationwide information campaign. More than three-fourths of all votes cast: 76.37% (or 17,059,495 voters) favored ratification 22.65% (or 5,058,714 voters) who voted against ratification. Feb. 11, 1987 The new constitution was proclaimed ratified and took effect. On that same day, Aquino, the other government officials, and the Armed Forces of the Philippines pledged allegiance to the Constitution The 1987 Constitution Significant features of the 1987 Constitution

MEMBERS OF THE CONSTITUTIONAL COMMISSION (CON COM) WHICH DRAFTED THE 1987 CONSTITUTION OF THE PHILIPPINES Cecilia Munoz Palma President Ambrosio B. Padilla Vice-President Napoleon G. Rama Floor Leader Ahmad DomocaoAlonto Assistant Floor Leader Jose D. Calderon Assistant Floor Leader Yusuf R. Abubakar Felicitas S. Aquino Adolfo S. Azcuna Teodoro C. Bacani Jose F. S. Bengzon, Jr. Ponciano L. Bennagen Joaquin G. Bernas Florangel Rosario Braid Crispino M. de Castro Jose C. Colayco Roberto R. Concepcion Hilario G. Davide, Jr. Vicente B. Foz Edmundo G. Garcia Jose Luis Martin C. Gascon Serafin V.C. Guingona Alberto M. K. Jamir Jose B. Laurel, Jr. Eulogio R. Lerum Regalado E. Maambong Christian S. Monsod Teodulo C. Natividad Ma. Teresa F. Nieva Jose N. Nolledo Blas F. Ople Minda Luz M. Quesada Florenz D. Regalado Rustico F. de los Reyes, Jr. Cirilo A. Rigos Francisco A. Rodrigo Ricardo J. Romulo Decoroso R. Rosales Rene V. Sarmiento Jose E. Suarez Lorenzo M. Sumulong Jaime S. L. Tadeo Christine O. Tan Gregorio J. Tingson Efrain B. Trenas Lugum L. Uka Wilfrido V. Villacorta Bernardo M. Villegas

Oct. 15, 1986 Constitutional Commission had its final session

The Constitution establishes the Philippines as a "democratic and republican State", where "sovereignty resides in the people and all government authority emanates from them". (Section 1, Article II)

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Consistent with the doctrine of separation of powers, the powers of the national government are exercised in main by three branches:

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the executive branch headed by the President; the legislative branch composed of Congress; and the judicial branch with the Supreme Court occupying the highest tier of the judiciary.

The President and the members of Congress are directly elected by the people, while the members of the Supreme Court are appointed by the President from a list formed by the Judicial and Bar Council. It is the Congress which enacts the laws, subject to the veto power of the President which may nonetheless be overturned by a two-thirds vote of Congress (Section 27(1), Article VI). The President has the constitutional duty to ensure the faithful execution of the laws (Section 17, Article VII), while the courts are expressly granted the power of judicial review (Section 1, Article VIII), including the power to nullify or interpret laws. The President is also recognized as the commander-in-chief of the armed forces (Section 18, Article VII). The Constitution also establishes limited political autonomy to the local government units that act as the municipal governments for provinces, cities, municipalities, and barangays. (Section 1, Article X) Local governments are generally considered as falling under the executive branch, yet local legislation requires enactment by duly elected local legislative bodies. The Supreme Court has noted that the Bill of Rights "occupies a position of primacy in the fundamental law". The Bill of Rights, contained in Article III, enumerates the specific protections against State power. It guarantees the due process and equal protection clause, the right against unwarranted searches and seizures, the right to free speech and the free exercise of religion, the right against self-incrimination, and the right to habeas corpus.

The Constitution also enunciates state principles and policies. Among the principles and policies embodied in the Constitution are: (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8) Sovereignty of the people; Renunciation of war as an instrument of national policy; Supremacy of civilian authority over the military; Service and protection of the people as the prime duty of the Government; Separation of Church and State; Guarantee of human rights; Separation of power among the various branches of governments; and Autonomy for local government units.

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Defects in the Constitution

Drafted not by duly elected members of a representative constituent assembly or constitutional convention but by non-elective commissioners; and Ratified under the authority of a revolutionary government

http://medlibrary.org/medwiki/Constitution_of_the_Philippines#Background_of_the_1987_Co nstitution http://www.gov.ph/1986/03/25/proclamation-no-3-s-1986-2/ http://www.chanrobles.com The 1987 Philippine Constitution, Hector S. De Leon, et al, 2011

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OCCENA VS. COMELEC G.R. NO. L-34150 APRIL 2, 1981 FACTS: Petitioner Samuel Occena and Ramon A. Gozales instituted a prohibiting proceedings against the validity of three batasang pambansa resolutions (Resolution No. 1 proposing an amendment allowing a natural-born citizen of the Philippines naturalized in a foreign country to own a limited area of land for residential purposes was approved by the vote of 122 to 5; Resolution No. 2 dealing with the Presidency, the Prime Minister and the Cabinet, and the National Assembly by a vote of 147 to 5 with 1 abstention; and Resolution No. 3 on the amendment to the Article on the Commission on Elections by a vote of 148 to 2 with 1 abstention.) The petitioners contends that such resolution is against the constitutions in proposing amendments: ISSUE: Whether the resolutions are unconstitutional? HELD: In dismissing the petition for lack of merit, the court ruled the following: 1. The power of the Interim Batasang Pambansa to propose its amendments and how it may be exercised was validly obtained. The 1973 Constitution in its Transitory Provisions vested the Interim National Assembly with the power to propose amendments upon special call by the Prime Minister by a vote of the majority of its members to be ratified in accordance with the Article on Amendments similar with the interim and regular national assembly. 15 When, therefore, the Interim Batasang Pambansa, upon the call of the President and Prime Minister Ferdinand E. Marcos, met as a constituent body it acted by virtue of such impotence. 2. Petitioners assailed that the resolutions where so extensive in character as to amount to a revision rather than amendments. To dispose this contention, the court held that whether the Constitutional Convention will only propose amendments to the Constitution or entirely overhaul the present Constitution and propose an entirely new Constitution based on an ideology foreign to the democratic system, is of no moment, because the same will be submitted to the people for ratification. Once ratified by the sovereign people, there can be no debate about the validity of the new Constitution. The fact that the present Constitution may be revised and replaced with a new one ... is no argument against the validity of the law because 'amendment' includes the 'revision' or total overhaul of the entire Constitution. At any rate, whether the Constitution is merely amended in part or revised or totally changed would become immaterial the moment the same is ratified by the sovereign people." 3. That leaves only the questions of the vote necessary to propose amendments as well as the standard for proper submission. The language of the Constitution supplies the answer to the above questions. The Interim Batasang Pambansa, sitting as a constituent body, can propose amendments. In that capacity, only a majority vote is needed. It would be an indefensible proposition to assert that the three-fourth votes required when it sits as a legislative body applies as well when it has been convened as the agency through which amendments could be proposed. That is not a requirement as far as a constitutional convention is concerned. Further, the period required by the constitution was complied as follows: "Any amendment to, or revision of, this Constitution shall be valid when ratified by a majority of the votes cast in a plebiscite which shall be held not later than three months after the approval of such amendment or revision." 21 The three

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