Ang Pulitika ng Papel at Pluma: Panorama ng Kamalayang Pulitikal ng mga Pilipino

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The Evolution of Filipino Political Thought

Political Thinkers

   Ideas are meant not to immortalize history but rather to make sense of it.  The manufacture of such ideas are influenced
by circumstances that shape it and also, the vital thoughts of their authors.  If we are to analyze our history, we could see
that ideas are not only important for their interpretation of our history but also for their contribution to changes in our
nation.  Groundbreaking ideas have moved our nation to change.  It is thus valuable for us to recall our own political
thinkers.  To fully appreciate our nation's existence, it is important for us to trace the evolution of Filipino political
thinking. 
     During the time of Spanish colonial rule, Filipino political thinkers focused on reacting to the oppressive rule that
governs the Filipinos.  Marcelo H. Del Pilar, an ardent propagandist, reached out directly to the masses by illustrating in
his writings, the problems of the Philippines.  His thoughts during his last years became increasingly militant until he
foregoes the assimilationist cause, saying: "Insurrection is the last remedy, especially when the people have acquired the
belief that peaceful means to secure the remedies for evils prove futile."  In the case of Graciano Lopez-Jaena, political
thinking began mostly by chance.  His practice of small medical works among poor Filipinos led him to come to terms to
the discriminatory actions of the Friars.  Apolinario Mabini, being known as "the sublime paralytic", was engrossed to
the practice of establishing a government for the Philippines following the revolution.  He also dreamt of worlwide
recognition of the Philippine's sovereignty.  Andres Bonifacio, on the other hand, was known as the instigator of the
Philippine revolution and the founder of Katipunan.  His ideology is what guided the Katipunan's liberal, radical and
propagandist movements.
     The post-Spanish war brought forth the country's first president, Emilio Aguinaldo.  He became the figurehead of
Philippine nationalism and the subsequent resistance to the Spaniards.  His ideas were largely confined to that of his
upbringing, status and influences.  More recent thinkers included Maximo Kalaw, Rafael Palma, Claro M. Recto,
Manuel Roxas (Ang Bagong Katipunan), Benigno Ramos (Sakdal Movement), and Jose P. Laurel. These thinkers
proved to be influential in the formation of an ideology.  Luis Taruc, is the one who established Hukbalahap (Hukbo ng
Bayan Laban sa Hapon).  This group was very active in Central Luzon.  They were later known as Huks,  Running under
the Nacionalista Party, Ferdinand Marcos won the presidential elections.  Jose Ma. Sison, Benigno Aquino, Fidel V.
Ramos are other political thinkers hailed for their contributions to Filipino political thinking.  Notably, all these thinkers
have contributed to Filipino political thought.  Their ideas, as reactions to their times, prove that nationalism is highly
valued.
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Political Parties

     The first Philippine political party, established in 1900, was the Federal Party, which advocated peace and eventual
statehood. Later, in 1907, the Nationalist Party (NP) and the Democratic Party were established. They did not produce
an actual two-party system, since the Nationalists retained exclusive control and the Democrats functioned as a "loyal
opposition." However, following Japanese occupation and the granting of independence, an effective two-party system
developed between the Liberal Party (LP) and the NP. The Progressive Party, formed in 1957 by adherents of Ramon
Magsaysay, polled more than one million votes in the presidential election of 1958. In the elections of November 1965,
Senator Ferdinand Marcos, the NP candidate, received 55% of the vote. In the 1969 election, he was elected to an
unprecedented second term. All political activity was banned in 1972, following the imposition of martial law, and was
not allowed to resume until a few months before the April 1978 elections for an interim National Assembly. The Marcos
government's New Society Movement (Kilusan Bagong Lipunan- KBL) won that election and the 1980 and 1982
balloting for local officials, amid charges of electoral fraud and attempts by opposition groups to boycott the voting. The
principal opposition party was the People's Power Movement-Fight (Lakas Ng Bayan- Laban), led by Benigno S.
Aquino, Jr., until his assassination in 1983. This party joined with 11 other opposition parties in 1982 to form a coalition
known as the United Nationalist Democratic Organization (UNIDO). Following Aquino's murder, some 50 opposition
groups, including the members of the UNIDO coalition, agreed to coordinate their anti-Marcos efforts. This coalition of
opposition parties enabled Corazon Aquino to campaign against Marcos in 1986. In September 1986 the revolutionary left
formed a legal political party to contest congressional elections. The Partido ng Bayan (Party of the Nation) allied with
other left-leaning groups in an Alliance for New Politics. This unsuccessful attempt for electoral representation resulted in
a return to guerrilla warfare on the part of the Communists.

     After assuming the presidency, Aquino formally organized the People's Power Movement (Lakas Ng Bayan), the
successor to her late husband's party. In the congressional elections of May 1987, Aquino's popularity gave her party a
sweep in the polls, making it the major party in the country. Marcos's KBL was reduced to a minor party. Some of its
members formed their own splinter groups, such as the Grand Alliance for Democracy (GAD), a coalition of parties
seeking distance from Marcos. Others revived the LP and the NP, seeking renewed leadership. The left-wing People's
Party (Partido Ng Bayan), which supports the political objectives of the NPA, was a minor party in the elections. In
May 1989 Juan Ponce Enrile reestablished the Nacionalista Party. A new opposition party, the Filipino Party (Partido
Pilipino), organized in 1991 as a vehicle for Aquino's estranged cousin Eduardo "Danding" Cojuangco's presidential
campaign. He ran third in the election, taking 18.1% of the vote, behind Miriam Defensor Santiago with 19.8% of the
vote. On 30 June 1992 Fidel Ramos succeeded Corazon Aquino as president of the Philippines with a plurality of 23.6%.
In September 1992 Ramos signed the Anti-Subversion Law signaling a peaceful resolution to more than 20 years of
Communist insurgency, with the repeal of the antisubversion legislation in place since 1957. On 26 August 1994 Ramos
announced a new political coalition that would produce the most powerful political group in the Philippines.
Ramos' Lakas-National Union of Christian Democrats (Lakas/NUCD) teamed with the Democratic Filipino Struggle
(Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino, Laban). Following the 1995 elections, the LDP controlled the Senate with 14 of
the 24 members. The elections in 1998 changed the political landscape once more. In the Senate the newly created Laban
Ng Masang Pilipino, led by presidential candidate, Joseph Estrada, captured 12 seats to the Lakas 5, PRP 2, LP 1,
independents 3. The LAMP party also dominated the House of Representatives with 135 seats to the Lakas 37, LP 13,
Aksyon Demokratiko 1, and 35 independents.

     Political parties and their leaders in 2002 included: Kilusang Bagong Lipunan (New Society Movement), led by
Imelda Marcos; Laban Ng Demokratikong Pilipino (Struggle of Filipino Democrats) or LDP, led by Eduardo Angara;
Lakas, led by Jose De Venecia; Liberal Party or LP, led by Florencio Abad; Nacionalista Party, led by Jose Oliveros;
National People's Coalition or NPC, led by Eduardo Cojuangco; PDP-Laban, led by Aquilino Pimentel; and the People's
Reform Party or PRP, led by Miriam Defensor-Santiago.

Source: http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/Asia-and-Oceania/Philippines 
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