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Restoration of the Commonwealth (THE TYDINGS BILL)

On November 15, 1935, the Filipino people took the penultimate step to independence
with the inauguration of the Commonwealth of the Philippines. Only two months prior,
on September 16, a million Filipinos had trooped to the polls to elect their two highest
officials—the President and Vice President. This was the first time in the history of the
nation that a Filipino would finally sit as Chief Executive and hold office in Malacañan
Palace.{{1}}

Early on, at the start of the American occupation, the United States had established
local governments with local elected town and provincial officials. Afterward came a
gradual expansion of national legislative representation, beginning with the Philippine
Assembly (or Lower House) in 1907.{{2}}

Independence Missions from 1919 onwards were periodically sent to the U.S. Congress
and the White House to lobby for and negotiate independence. In 1931, the OsRox
Mission (which stands for “Osmeña and Roxas”) successfully lobbied for the enactment
of the Hare-Hawes-Cutting Act, which was passed over President Herbert Hoover’s veto
in 1932. This was, however, rejected by the Philippine Legislature. In 1934, a new
mission (the QuAquAl Mission, made up of Quezon, Benigno Aquino Sr., and Rafael
Alunan) negotiated the Tydings-McDuffie or the Philippine Independence Act, which set
a ten-year transition period to be known as the Commonwealth of the Philippines,
followed by the recognition of the independence of the Philippines by the United States.

The Tydings-McDuffie Act established the parameters for the preparatory period. Some
powers of supervision were reserved to the United States, as well as foreign diplomacy
and currency. In all other respects, the Philippines became self-governing.

Aside from the certification by the President of the United States of the draft constitution
for the Commonwealth of the Philippines, the United States government also reserved
certain powers: currency, coinage, imports, exports, and immigration laws would require
the approval of the President of the United States. The United States could also
intervene in the processes of the Commonwealth of the Philippines via Proclamation by
President of the United States. All decisions of the courts of the Philippines were also
subject to review by the Supreme Court of the United States. However, these powers
were exercised rarely.

The Constitution of the Commonwealth of the Philippines provided for a presidential

system of government with a unicameral legislature. It had the power to enact laws for
the Philippines, known as Commonwealth Acts, through the National Assembly.

The Commonwealth was meant to lay down the foundations for an independent, fully-
functional state. Its priorities could be seen in the first laws enacted by the new National
Assembly: Commonwealth Act No. 1 established the Philippine Army and a national
defense policy; Commonwealth Act No. 2 established the National Economic Council;
Commonwealth Act No. 3 created the Court of Appeals.The 1935 Constitution was
amended in 1940 to permit the reelection of the president and the vice president, to
restore the Senate and thus shift the legislature back to the bicameral system, and to
establish a national electoral authority, the Commission on Elections. The proposed
amendments were ratified in a plebiscite held on June 18, 1940.{{3}}

The Congress of the Commonwealth then became the First Congress of the Republic,
and international recognition was finally achieved as governments entered into treaties
with the new republic.

Many of today’s institutions in our government trace their origins to the Commonwealth.
These include:

 Executive Office (1935)

 Court of Appeals (1935)
 Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office
 Komisyon ng Wikang Filipino (1936)
 National Bureau of Investigation (1936)
 Department of Budget and Management (1936)
 Government Service Insurance System (1936)
 Department of National Defense (1939)
 Department of Health (1940)
 New Bilibid Prisons (1940)
 Presidential Communications Operations Office (from the Department of
Information and Public Relations, 1943)
 Boy Scouts of the Philippines
 Girl Scouts of the Philippines
 National Food Authority
 National Economic Development Authority (originally National Economic Council,
1936)
 Bureau of Immigration and Deportation
 ROTC system
 Bureau of Aeronautics (1936 ;now the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines)
 Philippine Military Academy
 Philippine Air Force
 Articles of War (AFP)
 Comelec
 Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines

Government Reorganization
Rehabilitation of the Philippine National Bank
People’s Court
Foreign Policies
United Nations Charter
Foreign Relations Office
International Banking
Bell Trade Act
1946 Presidential Election

Refferences:
https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/the-commonwealth-of-the-philippines/