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Ramon C.

Casiple
Executive Director,
Institute for Political and Electoral Reform (IPER)
Topics
 Addressing constitutional reforms from the
perspective of participative democracy and of leveling
the political playing field
 Specifically:
 Form of government
 Political party reforms
 Party-list reforms
 Ills of the present political system
 Critique of the 1987 constitution re political reforms
 Proposals within the context of federal system
1986 ConCom Chair Muños-Palma
 “Established the presidential system of government
with three branches — the legislative, executive, and
judicial — each separate and independent of each
other, but affording an effective check and balance of
one over the other.”
 The party-list system is an “innovation [that] is a
product of the signs of the times when there is an
intensive clamor for expanding the horizons of
participatory democracy among the people.”
 The “Article on Social Justice which we have framed is
the heart of the new Constitution.”
Ills of the political system
 1987 constitution as product of the anti-Marcos
struggle and an attempt to establish a broad,
participative democracy
 Republican presidential system, party-list system, and
social justice provisions as key elements
 The 1987 constitutional regime failed in its bid to
broaden and institute participative democracy
 It established an elitist democracy
 It has not resolved the various internal conflicts
 It failed to deliver on social justice and inclusive growth
Ills of the political system
 Most of all, it failed to address the over-concentration
of powers at the presidential and national levels
 Power over the armed forces
 Power over the national budget and government
finances
 Power over appointments
 Instead, it continued and institutionalized the
political patronage system
 It strengthened the traditional political structure
centered on political families, clans, and dynasties
Ills of the political system
 The 1987 constitutional political order failed to attract
and mainstream rebel forces
 It has not been able to bring justice to victims of the
Marcos HR violations and was very slow in
compensating them, and reintegrated the Marcos
family and cronies into the mainstream without going
through the process of rendering justice and
reconciliation
 The building of a broad-based, participative
democracy is still a work in progress
Constitution on role of government
 Article II, Section 1. The Philippines is a democratic and
republican State. Sovereignty resides in the people and all
government authority emanates from them.
 Article II, Section 4. The prime duty of the Government is to
serve and protect the people.
 Article II, Section 9. The State shall promote a just and
dynamic social order that will ensure the prosperity and
independence of the nation and free the people from poverty
through policies that provide adequate social services,
promote full employment, a rising standard of living, and an
improved quality of life for all.
Constitution on role of government
 Critique: Constitutional provisions on participative
democracy are weak, unimplemented or set aside in
practice.
 Critique: Constitutional check and balance between is
compromised by a very strong presidency who enjoys
extraordinary powers over the armed force,
appointments, and public funds.
 Critique: Electoral system does not guarantee a level
playing field, prevents electoral fraud, and strengthens
the growth of political fiefdoms.
Constitution on political parties
 Article IX, Section 6. A free and open party system shall
be allowed to evolve according to the free choice of the
people, subject to the provisions of this Article.
 Article II, Section 26. The State shall guarantee equal
access to opportunities for public service and prohibit
political dynasties as may be defined by law.
 Critique: Not clearly defined and are prone to
misinterpretation
 Critique: No enabling law up to the present
Constitution on PL System
 Article X, Section 5. (1) The House of Representatives shall
be composed of not more than two hundred and fifty
members, … (including) those who, as provided by law, shall
be elected through a party-list system of registered national,
regional, and sectoral parties or organizations.
 “(2) The party-list representatives shall constitute twenty
per centum 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.
Constitution on PL System
 RA 7941 or the Party-List Law is enabling law.
 Critique:
 Separate listing of party-list groups from regular parties
(Comelec)
 Exclusively reserving the system to the marginalized and
under-representative sectors (RA 7941)
 Practically removing the threshold for qualifying
winning party-list groups (SC decision)
 Limiting to 20% PL seats in HOR (1987 Constitution)
 Putting a cap of three seats for winning party-list groups
(RA 7941)
Proposed reforms: Form of government
 Vertical sharing of governmental powers:
 Federal government and regional governments
 Stronger autonomous powers of local governments
 Principles of solidarity and subsidiarity
 Horizontal sharing of executive powers:
 Dual-executive system
 Parliamentary legislature
 Limits on presidential prerogatives on armed forces,
appointments, and budget
Proposed reforms: Political Parties
 Development of political parties as mechanisms of representation and
democratic governance
 Stipulating that political parties are public institutions
 Requiring political parties to be democratic and to adhere to the
Constitution, both in its program and platform, and in its internal
processes
 Political turncoatism should be restricted, and parties should institute
party discipline
 Opposition parties should adopt shadow government mechanisms
 Enlarging role of the Commission on Elections in supervising political
parties
 The state should provide all necessary support to strengthen the
political party system, including state subsidy of qualified political
parties
Proposed reforms: List PR
 Stipulate the list proportional representation system
and reclassify all party-list groups as political parties
 Increase the list PR seats to at least 40% of HOR
 Remove all artificial caps and threshold requirements
 Institute voting for the list PR on a regional basis, in
line with the shift to a federal system
Thank you!

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