Qualifications

COMMISSION ON ELECTIONS

The criteria for elections are simply to be free and fair. Recognition is given to the individuals
who come out to participate in the process either as voters, media watchdogs, monitors, citizen-
voter educators, and even citizen arms. Yet there are major areas of interest that threatens the
very existence of free and fair elections in the Philippines. These areas are of political party
strengthening, election administration, enforcement of election laws, voter registration, election
modernization, prosecution of election offenders, and citizen-voter education.

To be sure, many of these areas of concern can be remedied by law or by judicious actions and
by the Commission on Elections. However, many others can be traced to the constitutional
provisions on the electoral system and on the Commission of Elections. Advocacy for electoral
reforms cover a broad range of subject matter: from the rules of the electoral process itself, to
reforms in the electoral administration, to reforms in the political party system and conduct of
electoral contestation, to electorate behavior and choice, and the broadening of meaningful
participation of politically-marginalized sections of the body politic. With all of this, the
researchers will have the right data for the study especially on their advocacies for electoral
reform and reforms in the political party system.

CONGRESS

Political parties in our country are normally used as political vehicles to win an election. Political
party system is centered on personalities rather than ideology and political platform. Most
political aspirants change political parties for convenience, rather than because of conviction.
This only shows the lack of ideological commitment of the members of party because they
choose parties based on the rise and fall of the tide of opportunity. For these reasons, efforts to
reform Philippine political parties have been initiated by the Congress since the 12th Congress.

Congress has the power to pass a measure that will institutionalize and strengthen political
parties as pillars of the country's democratic system. It is imperative that the country's political
party system should be strengthened in order to achieve genuine political development and
democratization. Bills that have been proposed over the years by both houses are aimed at
promoting party loyalty, discipline and adherence to ideological principles, platforms and
programs. By studying their motives in proposing bills to improve the political party system in
the Philippines, the researchers can gain prominent information in their agenda to reform the
political party system.