CONSTITUTION

Constitution Day in the Philippines is on February 2 by virtue of Proclamation No. 211

series of 1988 issued by the late President Cory Aquino. The purpose of establishing
this special day is as follows—

“WHEREAS, in order to instill in the hearts and minds of the Filipino people the
democratic principles and the noble and lofty ideals enshrined in the Constitution, it is
but fitting that a day be set aside as CONSTITUTION DAY to give the Filipino people
the opportunity to consecrate and dedicate themselves to the Constitution and ponder
on the significance thereof.”

I conducted an informal survey in my immediate community to determine the level of

awareness about our nation’s Constitution Day. Sadly, the results reveal that we may
have forgotten what February 2 should be all about. An uncle of mine said it quite well
—“The meaning of Constitution Day to many of our people is as murky as the polluted
Pasig River.”

Relatives who work in government have told me that they do not do anything special to
commemorate Constitution Day. Colleagues and friends employed in top universities in
the country told me exactly the same story. Surprisingly, it seems that even law schools
do not even recognize the significance of this day. And it is deeply unfortunate that
primary and secondary schools do not use this occasion to improve our youth’s
knowledge and comprehension of our Constitution. However, the most disappointing
result is that practically all of the people I asked were not even aware that February 2 is
designated as Constitution Day.

The 1987 Constitution is the utmost symbol of Philippine statehood. It is the central
institution in our political system. However, given the ignorance and indifference to our
Constitution Day unraveled by my informal survey, it appears that the “democratic
principles” and the “noble and lofty ideals” enshrined in this sublime document are not
yet properly instilled in our hearts and minds. Of course, there are other more telling
proofs which actually show that the constitutional spirit has yet to be infused in our
political consciousness. And the most disheartening of these examples is the
unrelenting hold of political dynasties in our political life.

Section 26 of Article II provides—“The State shall guarantee equal access to

opportunities for public service and prohibit political dynasties as may be defined by
law.” The prevailing belief is that to enforce the clear prohibition in this constitutional
provision, Congress must first enact a law precisely providing for such a proscription.
However, the argument to wait for the legislation of an Anti-Political Dynasty Law only
benefits politicians who are standing members of political dynasties. In the meantime,
the rest of us continue to suffer incompetent and corrupt governance.

But if we fervently believe in the spirit behind this constitutional provision—i.e.

maintaining a premium quality public sector—then we can give life to its proscription by
not voting for candidates who belong or who are allied to political dynasties. We can
even go a step further by passionately convincing others to do the same. And just
imagine if a large majority of us overtly and persistently do not vote for dynastic
politicians, then Section 26 of Article II could evolve into a constitutional norm which
does not need legislation for enforcement. It could then become a standard political
practice that is proudly adhered to by everybody in the polity.

To have this deep awareness and insight of constitutional principles is ultimately the
hope in commemorating Constitution Day. The fact is a nation’s constitution still has to
make sense to the people who live under its dictates. Hence, the need to actually bother
to “consecrate and dedicate” ourselves to the Constitution and ponder on its relevance
in our own lives. For it is precisely this shared understanding which leads to habitual
obedience to constitutional tenets. Indeed, the Constitution should not be the exclusive
domain of those who can file petitions before the Supreme Court. (MindaViews is the
opinion section of MindaNews. Atty. Michael Henry Ll. Yusingco is a practicing
lawyer. He is the author of the book, Rethinking the Bangsamoro Perspective. He
researches on current issues in state-building, decentralization and constitutionalism)

“instill in the hearts and minds of the Filipino people the democratic principles and the
noble and lofty ideals enshrined in the Constitution

MY OPINION ON THE PHILIPPINE CONSTITUTION

In my opinion the relevance of the Philippine Constitution to the Filipinos is that it is a

symbol of the Philippines statehood and independence of the country. The Constitution in the
Philippines symbolizes the laws and principles of the country. It is the rules and laws that govern
the country giving its citizens the right privileges and rights including the limitations needed in
order for the country to be safe and have peace. It is also because the current constitution that
we have today is the 1987 constitution which symbolizes the democratic principles and rule that
our country took. It shows the freedom of the people since in the past the Philippines were
under the rule of the Spanish to the Americans then to the Japanese including the parliamentary
constitution of Marcos and his martial law. It is because the constitution portrays our freedom as
the citizens of the country and the independence of the country to function on its own. One
example would be the 1987 constitution showing that the country took a democratic path in
leading its citizens and the country for in the past the country and its citizens were under the
oppression of the Spanish, Americans and Japanese thus in came the martial law and Marcos’
rule thus the 1987 constitution which is the current constitution that we have today shows or
portrays the country as a democratic country and independence including the freedom of its
citizens and the laws, principle and rules of the country.

https://www.mindanews.com/mindaviews/2015/01/commentary-how-important-is-the-
constitution-to-us/

https://mb.com.ph/2020/02/08/learners-should-have-more-exposure-to-constitution-deped/