Jericho Danao

BSA-1C Mr. Joel Nool

THE COMMONWEALTH CONSTITUTION (1935)

The Constitution, whether written or unwritten is recognized as the supreme law of

the land as it serves as the basis for the legitimacy of any governmental acts
necessary for its existence. It is a codified law that determines the powers and
duties of a government and it embodies certain rights of the people.

Right after the signing of the Treaty of Paris in Washington D.C in 1898 that
ceded the Philippines to the US paying the amount of $20, 000, 000 to Spain in the
process, and the eruption of Filipino-American War in 1899, our country was
placed under a military government until 1901 with the passing of the Spooner
Amendment, putting an end to the military rule in the Philippines and replacing it
with a civil government with William H. Taft as the first civil governor. The
ratification of the Philippine Bill of 1902, which called for the creation of a lower
legislative branch composed of elected Filipino legislators, and the Jones Law in
August 1916 gave the Filipinos the opportunity to govern themselves better. The
First Philippine Assembly, which convened on October 16, 1907, was composed of
educated Filipinos from illustrious clans such as Sergio Osmeña and Manuel L.
Quezon, who revived the issue of immediate independence for the Filipinos and
this was expressed by sending political missions to the US Congress.

Controversy divided the Philippine legislature with the debate on the acceptance
or rejection of the Hare-Hawes-Cutting Bill brought home by Osmeña-Roxas
mission from the US Congress in 1931, which provided for a 10-year transition
period before the granting of Philippine independence. The passage of the
independence bill resulted in the splitting of the Democrata Party and Nacionalista
Party into two factions; the Pros and Antis. Majority in the legislature led by
Quezon and Recto rejected the said bill, thereby composing the Antis, while the
Pros became the Minority under Osmena, Roxas and others.

On October 17, 1933, Quezon and others triumphed in this battle as the Philippine
legislature rejected the bill. Quezon eventually brought in from the United States
the Tydings-McDuffie Act (Public Law 73-127) authored by Sen. Millard Tydings
and Rep. John McDuffie, a slightly amended version of the Hare-Hawes-Cutting
bill signed by President Franklin Roosevelt on March 24, 1934. The bill set July 4
after the tenth year of the commonwealth as date of Philippine independence. This
was accepted by the Philippine Legislature on May 1, 1934.
Jericho Danao
BSA-1C Mr. Joel Nool
The organization of constitutional Convention that would draw up the
fundamental law of the land based on the American model was one of the salient
provisions of the Tydings-McDuffie Act. Delegates to the convention were
subsequently elected in 1934. In the first meeting held on July 30 at the session of
the House of Representatives, Claro M. Recto was unanimously elected as its
President.

Salient features of the 1935 Constitution include the following: a bicameral

legislature composed of a senate and House of Representatives. The President is to
be elected to a four-year term together with the Vice-President without re-election;
rights of suffrage by male citizens of the Philippines who are twenty-one years of
age or over and are able to read and write; extension of the right of suffrage to
women within two years after the adoption of the constitution.

The draft of the constitution was approved by the convention on February 8,

1935 and ratified by Pres. Roosevelt in Washington D.C on March 25, 1935.
Elections were held in September 1935, Manuel L. Quezon was elected as the
president of the Commonwealth. The 1935 Constitution provided the legal basis of
the Commonwealth Government which was considered a transition government
before the granting of the Philippine independence with American-inspired
constitution; the Philippine government would eventually pattern its government
system after American government. It has been said that the 1935 Constitution was
the best-written Philippine charter ever.