POL GOV

TOPICS FOR GROUP 5

ELECTIONS AND POLITICAL PARTIES

Article V of the 1987 Philippine Constitution: Suffrage

Section 1: Suffrage
 Right and obligation of qualified Filipino citizen to vote in the national and local
elections in the decision of public questions submitted to them.
 Merely a privilege to be given to the citizens by the law making power
 Subject to constitutional limitations.
 Classified as a political right, such as election, enabling every citizen to
participate in the process of government to assure that it derived its power from
the consent governed.
Scope of suffrage
1. Election - people choose for definite and fixed periods and to whom they entrust,
from the time being as their representatives, the exercise of powers of
government.
2. Initiative - power of the people to propose amendments to the Constitution or to
propose and enact legislation (Constitution, Statutes, Local Legislation).
3. Referendum - power of the electorate to approve or reject legislation through an
election called for the purpose (Statutes and Local Law).
4. Plebiscite - popular vote of the people expressing their view within their choice
for or against a proposed law submitted to them.
5. Recall - a public officer may be removed from the office during their tenure or
before the expiration of the term by a vote of the people after registration of a
petition signed by a required percentage of the qualified voter.
Types of election
1. Regular - election of officers either nationwide or in certain sub-divisions thereof,
after the expiration of the full term of the former officers.
2. Special - held to fill a vacancy in office before the expiration of the full term for
which the incumbent was elected.
Qualification of voters
1. Citizen of the Philippines (male or female)
2. Not otherwise disqualified by law
3. At least 18 years of age
4. Resided in the Philippines for at least one year and in the place wherein they
propose to vote for at least six months preceding the election.
Who are disqualified to vote?
1. Person sentenced by final judgment to suffer imprisonment for not less than one
year, such disability not having removed by plenary pardon or granted amnesty.
But such person shall automatically require to vote upon expiration of five years
after service of the sentence.
2. Person adjudged by final judgment by competent court or tribunal having
committed any crime involving disloyalty to the duly constituted government such
as rebellion, sedition or any crime against national security, unless restored to full
civil and political rights in accordance with the law. Such person shall likewise
automatically regain the right to vote upon expiration of five years after the
service of sentence.
3. Insane or incompetent persons as declared by competent authority. This person
is not qualified to vote even if they have the necessary qualifications.

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Subject: Philippine Politics and Governance – Module 6
Party System – It is referred to as the interactions of parties with each other. The party
system is not equated to parties because a party system is seen as macro perspective
whereas parties are micro perspective just focusing on the particular party.

Type of Party Definition

System
One party There is only one party who holds the power because it towers
above the other groups because it suppresses all other groups
Two-party system The system wherein major political parties alternate with each
other in exercise of power
Multi-party system More than two politic
All parties fight during election

Political Party - Group of people organized for the purpose of winning government
power by electoral or other means. It is also a voluntary association of individuals who
advocate certain principles or policies as superior to all others for the general conduct of
government and which nominates and supports certain of its leaders as electoral
candidates.

Characteristics
 Organized structure of authority and power distribution
 Seek to attract popular support in the form of votes
 Seeks political power directly through electoral method
 Prepared to support a candidate and fight for victory in election
Functions of political parties
 Leadership recruitment
 Coordinate policy
 Mobilize voters
 Provide accountability
 Nominate candidates
 Form governments
Principal activities of political party
 Election campaigning
 Nominate candidates
 Inform and activate supporters
 Act as bonding agent
 Help Govern
 Act as watchdog

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Subject: Philippine Politics and Governance – Module 6
Types of Political party
• Major parties - correspond typically to traditional parties
• Minor parties or party-list organization - rely on the party-list system to
win Congressional seats
• Regional or Provincial parties - correspond to a region-wide or
province-wide organization

CIVIL SOCIETY AND SOCIAL MOVEMENT

Civil Society is comprised of groups or organizations working in
the interest and will of the citizens but operating outside of the
governmental and for profit factors.
Civil Society is a crucial factor in development and shaping of
events in a country. It can influence both government and economy.
Today, Philippine civil society organizations are widely seen as
some of the most vibrant and advanced in the world. The Philippines
has the largest number of NGOs per capita in Asia, and many believe
that if civil society has contributed to democratization anywhere, it is in
the Philippines. Many of the key international NGOs and networks are
based in the Philippines and headed.

There are many types of CSOs in the country,the more important types are;
1. People’s organizations - are membership organizations representing
marginalized groups and often organized based on sector, issue, or
geographical area.
2. Development NGO’s - act as intermediate agencies and institutions that
typically operate with a full-time staff complement and provide a wide range of
services to primary organizations, communities, and individuals.
3. Cooperatives - is an association of persons who have voluntarily joined
together to make “equitable contributions to the capital required, patronizing
their products and services and accepting a fair share of the risks and benefits
of the undertaking in accordance with universally accepted cooperative
principles:

The Legal Framework for Civil Society

The 1987 Constitution of the Philippines, forged and shaped in
the after month of the 1986 People Power Revolution, clearly
recognizes participation and empowerment, including the important
role of CSOs. This may be seen in several provisions of the
Constitution, most prominently in the following:

Article II, Section 23: “The State shall encourage non-governmental,

community-based, or sector organizations that promote the welfare of
the nation.”
Article XIII, Section 15: “The State shall respect the role of independent
people’s organizations to enable the people to pursue and protect,
within the democratic framework, their legitimate and collective
interests and aspirations through peaceful and lawful means

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Subject: Philippine Politics and Governance – Module 6
 Article XIII, Section 16: “The right of the people and their organizations
to effective and reasonable participation at all levels of social, political
and economic decision-making shall not be abridged. The State shall,
by law, facilitate the establishment of adequate consultation
mechanisms.

Another important law for CSOs

Social Reform and Poverty Alleviation Act of 1997
Which created the National Anti-Poverty Commission (NAPC), a
coordination and oversight body headed by the president of the country
to ensure that social reform addresses the basic inequities in Philippine
society. It is composed of the heads of 14 major government
departments, the presidents of local government leagues, and 14 basic
sector representatives. The 14 sector representatives are elected by
and accountable to assemblies of sector CSOs and their elected sector
council.

Factors which Facilitated the Pursuit of Civil Society Advocacies

1. The nature of the political dispensation as was seen in the country’s
transitioning from authoritarianism to democracy.
2. Nature of the leadership.
3. The global environment

General Impact of Civil Society on the Philippine Political Landscape

1. The generation of interest and participation in the advocacies of civil
society. Thus, it is able to build its constituencies.
2. Forging of CSO alliances with government agencies allies in the executive
and legislative branches of government.
3. Institutionalization of CSO advocacies within government policy-making.
4. Institutionalization of CSO advocacies in the international arena.
5. Constitutional reforms.

Philippine Civil Society Organizations

An often-used definition of civil society and how it can be
differentiated from the state and the business sector is that “the State
concerns public action for public good, the Market is about private
action for private good, while civil society is private action for public
good.

Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan)

Bayan was created in 1985 by more than 1,000 mass
organizations. It fights for national and social liberation against
imperialism, feudalism, and bureaucrat capitalism. Bayan fights for the
nationalistic and democratic needs of the people through legal and
militant forms of struggle, and, though it does not participate in armed
struggle, Bayan respects the right of others to take such an option.

SOCIAL MOVEMENT
Defined as a particular form of collective behavior wherein the impetus
to act comes from the attitudes and aspirations of its members. Rather than

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Subject: Philippine Politics and Governance – Module 6
necessitating a formal membership, being a member of a social movement
demands deep-seated conviction and commitment.
Social movements are a specific type of group action in which
large informal groups of individuals or organizations work for or against
change in specific political or social issues. For Hague and Harrop,
Social Movements consist of people from outside the mainstream who
come together to seek a common objective through an unorthodox
challenge to existing political order. Social Movements seek to
introduce what they believe are reforms and positive changes to the
existing order.
Classification of social movement
1. Reformative social movements - advocates for minor changes instead
of radical changes.
For example, revolutionary movements can scale down their demands
and agree to share powers with others, becoming a political party.
2. Revolutionary social movements - is a specific type of social movement
dedicated to carrying out revolutionary reforms and gain some control of
the state. If they do not aim for an exclusive control, they are not
revolutionary.
Difference between social movement and a spontaneous mass action:
 A social movement carries with it an action contemplated to fulfill a
recognized social goal.
 A spontaneous mass action seeks to unsettle or overthrow the existing
political order, like EDSA revolts.
According to Haywood (2207), New Social Movements are different from
the Traditional Movements in 3 aspects:
1. The supporters of new social movement are young, better -
educated, and relatively affluent, rather than oppressed and
disadvantaged.
2. The supporters of new social movements are more concerned with
the quality of life, rather than with economic advancement.
3. The supporters of new social movements are adherent of common
new left values and beliefs, while the traditional have diverse
interests and rarely works.
The Role and Contributions of Civil Society Organizations and Social
Movement
1. Civil Society Organizations and Social Movements lead the fight
against government abuse. Without the help and active involvement
of these groups, many government anomalies would not be
uncovered and remain enacted upon.
2. Civil society organizations and social movements inspire reforms in,
and positive changes to, the rigid structures of government.
3. They promote worthy causes. They also educate people on the
value of ensuring the survival and propagation of endangered life.
4. They promote an avenue for dialogue and consensus rather than
open confrontation and violence. They stand in the way of radical
and violent movements and ideologies.
5. They help redirect government priorities and policies. These groups
constitute pressure blocs which help the government draft its plan
of action.

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Subject: Philippine Politics and Governance – Module 6
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Subject: Philippine Politics and Governance – Module 6