History

READINGS IN PHILLIPINE
 1899
MALOLOS
CONSTITUTION
The Political Constitution of 1899, informally
known as the Malolos Constitution, was the
basic law or constitution of the First Philippine
Republic.

It was written by Felipe Calderón y Roca and

Felipe Buencamino as an alternative to a pair
of proposals to the Malolos Congress by
Apolinario Mabini and Pedro Paterno.
The 1899 constitution is about placing limitations on
unsupervised freedom of action by the chief executive which
would have hampered rapid decision making. As it was created
during the fight for Philippine independence from Spain.

It is anchored in democratic traditions that ultimately had their

roots in American soil.
It created a state or Filipino government that was
popular, representative and responsible that has
three distinct branches or power namely, the
legislative, the executive, and the judicial.

The constitution specifically provided for safeguards

against abuses, and enumerated the national and
individual rights not only of the Filipinos and of the
aliens.
The constitution as a whole is a monument to the
capacity of the Filipinos to chart their own course
along democratic lines. In a period of storm and
stress, it symbolized the ideals of a people who had
emerged from the Dark Ages into the Light of
Reason.
Thank You
for listening!