TUTIONS IN THE

STI PH
ON IPP
E C IN
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ES
 Constitution of Biak-na-Bato (November 1, 1897 –
December 14, 1897)

In Biac-na-bato on the first day of the month of November of the year one thousand
eight hundred and ninety-seven, the Representatives of the people of the Philippine
Islands, assembled for the purpose of modifying the Constitution of this Republic of the
Philippines, drawn up and proclaimed in the town of Naic. province of Cavite, on the
twenty-second of March of this year, in accordance with the provisions of Decree No. 29
of current year after a long discussion, [the Representatives] have unanimously agreed
upon the following

The separation of the Philippines from the Spanish monarchy

and their formation into an independent state with its own
government called the Philippine Republic has been the end
sought by the Revolution in the existing war, begun on the 24th of
August, 1896; and therefore, in its name and by the power delegated
by the Filipino people, interpreting faithfully their desires and
ambitions, we, the representatives of the Revolution, in a meeting at
Biac-na-bato, Nov. 1st. 1897.

 Malolos Constitution (January 23, 1899 – March 23,

1901)
The Malolos Constitution proclaimed that sovereignty is solely
vested in the people, established fundamental civil rights,
separated church and state, and called for the establishment of an
Assembly of Representatives to serve as the legislative body.

While the Commonwealth Constitution established a presidential form

of government with a unicameral legislature. Through the National
Assembly, it had the authority to pass legislation for the Philippines known
as Commonwealth Acts. The Commonwealth was intended to lay the
groundwork for an autonomous, completely functioning state. The 1935
Constitution or The Commonwealth Constitution was amended in 1940 to
allow the president and vice president to be re-elected, to restore the
Senate and thus return the legislature to a bicameral structure, and to
create a national electoral authority, the Commission on Elections.

 1935 Constitution (JNovember 15, 1935 – July 4, 1946)

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.
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.
 1943 Constitution(October 14, 1943 – August 17, 1945)
The 1943 Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines , composed of a
preamble and twelve articles, creates a Republican state with a powerful
executive branch and subordinate legislative and judicial branches. The
executive power is vested in the President, who is to be elected by the
members of the National Assembly from among themselves. The
President is the head of government, and commander-in-chief of the
Armed Forces. The powers of the President are: to veto any bill of the
Assembly, to promulgate regulations when the Assembly is not in
session and in times of war or national emergency, to declare martial
law, to suspend the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus, and to appoint
the members of the Council of State and officials of the local government.

 A limited legislative power is exercised by the unicameral National

Assembly whose members, like the President, are not directly elected by the
people. Rather, the Assembly is to be composed of representatives from
each province elected in Kalibapi conventions throughout the country with
appointed governors and mayors as ex-officio members. The judicial power
is exercised by the Supreme Court whose justices, together with judges of
lower courts, are to be appointed by the President. The 1943 Constitution
enumerates the duties and rights of the citizens, requires the government to
develop Tagalog as the national language, and stipulates that one year after
the termination of the Great East Asia War or the World War II; a new
constitution shall be formulated and adopted to replace this Constitution.
 The 1943 Constitution was the constitution of the Japanese-sponsored
Second Republic of the Philippines (1943-1945). It was recognized as
legitimate and binding only in Japanese-controlled areas of the Philippines
but was ignored by the United States government and the Philippine
Commonwealth government in-exile. In June 1943, the Preparatory
Commission for Philippine Independence (PCPI), composed of 20 delegates,
was created to draft a new constitution by the Kalibapi [Kapisanan sa
Paglilingkod sa Bagong Pilipinas], the only political organization allowed at
that time. The Japanese monitored the drafting of the constitution and
instructed the members of PCPI, led by Jose P. Laurel , that the constitution
should conform with the principles of the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity
Sphere. In September 1943, the draft constitution was unanimously
approved by all members of the PCPI and was submitted for ratification in a
popular convention of the Kalibapi in Manila.
 1973 Constitution (January 17, 1973 – February 22, 1986)
he Constitution of the Philippines (Saligang Batas ng Pilipinas in Filipino)
is the supreme law of the Philippines.
The 1973 Constitution, promulgated after Marcos' declaration of martial
law, but having been in the planning process for years before this,
was supposed to introduce a parliamentary-style government.

The 1973 Constitution is compose of Preamble and 17 articles, provides

for the shift from presidential to parliamentary system of government.
The constitution vests the legislative power in National Assembly.

A prime Minister is elected from among the members of the National

Assembly and serves as the head of government and commander-in-chief
of the Philippine Armed Forces.

A President is elected from among the members of the National Assembly

and serves as the symbolic head of state with a six year term.

The Judicial power is vested in the supreme court, composed of a chief

justice and 14 Justices. The National Assembly exercise the power to define,
prescribe and apportion the jurisdiction of the lower courts. All justices of
the supreme court and judges of the lower courts are appointed by
Prime Minister.
This Constitution retains the independence of the Commission on
Elections and establishes two independent Constitution al bodies [Civil
Service Commission and the Commission on Audit] as well as the National
Economic Development Authority [NEDA]. On 24 August 1970,
Congress enacted RA No. 6132, otherwise known as the Constitutional
Convention Act, for the purpose of convening a Constitution al Convention.
The 320 delegates met from June 1971 until 30 November 1972, when they
approved the draft of the new Charter.
While in the process of drafting a new Constitution , President Ferdinand
Marcos declared Martial Law on 21 September 1972. The draft Constitution
was submitted to the Citizen's Assemblies from January 10 to 17, 1973 for
ratification. On 17 January 1973 , President Marcos issued Proclamation No.
1102, announcing the ratification of the Constitution of the Republic of the
Philippines. The above constitution was amended in 1976, 1980 and in 1981.
There were minor amendments done in 1984.
Provisional Constitution of the Philippines (1986) (March
25, 1986 – February 1, 1987)
A provisional government was proclaimed in March 1986 by Aquino with
the adoption of an interim constitution, informally called "Freedom
Constitution" by her administration. She did not officially proclaim a
"revolutionary government" which some of her aides advised as too
inflammatory. Aquino also abolished the Batasang Pambansa, the national
legislature previously dominated by Marcos' party the Kilusang Bagong
Lipunan, and claimed legislative powers for herself. The interim
constitution replaced the 1973 constitution adopted during Marcos'
administration.

Aquino had vast personal powers under the provisional constitution. This
includes the power to remove and replace local government officials during
the transition period. Supporters of Aquino's measures backed near
absolute powers given by the interim constitution as necessary so that the
"dictatorial" machinery of Marcos could be dismantled while opponents
argue that such powers could also make Aquino's government a
dictatorship. She projected that a regular government under a new
constitution would be in place within a year.
 1987 Constitution (1986) (February 2, 1987 – present)
Aquino began her term by repealing many of the Marcos-era regulations
that had repressed the people for so long. In March, she issued a unilateral
proclamation establishing a provisional constitution. This constitution
gave the President broad powers and great authority, but Aquino
promised to use them only to restore democracy under a new constitution.
This new constitution was drafted in 133 days by an appointed
Constitutional Commission of 48 members and ratified by the people in a
plebiscite held on February 2, 1987. It was largely modelled on the American
Constitution which had so greatly influenced the 1935 Constitution, but it
also incorporated Roman, Spanish, and Anglo law.

The 1987 Constitution established a representative democracy with power

divided among three separate and independent branches of government: the
Executive, a bicameral Legislature, and the Judiciary. There were three
independent constitutional commissions as well: the Commission on Audit,
the Civil Service Commission, and the Commission on Elections. Integrated
into the Constitution was a full Bill of Rights, which guaranteed fundamental
civil and and political rights, and it provided for free, fair, and periodic
elections. In comparison with the weak document that had given Marcos a
legal fiction behind which to hide, this Constitution seemed ideal to many
Filipinos emerging from 20 years of political repression and oppression.
Thank you for reading!