Republic of the Philippines

Department of Education
Division of Batangas
San Juan East District
LAIYA NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL
Laiya Ibabao, San Juan, Batangas
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL

Name of Student: _________________________________

Grade/Section: ___________________________________

POLITICS AND GOVERNANCE

MODULE 7
Week 7
Duration: 4 hours

LESSON 7:
The Legislative

Prepared by:

JULIET J. SILANG
Subject Teacher

PHILIPPINE POLITICS AND GOVRNANCE I JULIET SILANG 1

CONTENT:
The Legislative
The role and responsibilities of the Philippine Senate and the House of Representatives

CONTENT STANDARDS:
The learner demonstrates an understanding of the historical background of Philippine democratic politics, the
executive, the legislative, and decentralization and local governance.

PERFORMANCE STANDARDS:
The learner shall be able to explain the roles of different political institutions.

MOST ESSENTIAL LEARNING COMPETENCIES (MELC):

Differentiate the roles and responsibilities of the Philippine Senate and the House of Representatives

OVERVIEW:
This Learning Module was prepared based on the Most Essential Learning Competencies (MELC) presented by
Department of Education. Included herein is a topic with corresponding tasks to be answered. These must be
accomplished and submitted on or before the deadline (to be announced).

Name: ___________________________________ Course Title: PHILIPPINE POLITICS AND GOVERNANCE

Grade/Strand/Section: ______________________ Date: _______________________
Module No. ___

START OF MODULE

LESSON 7: THE LEGISLATIVE

OBJECTIVES:
At the end of this lesson, the students should be able to:
1. discuss the roles and responsibilities of the Philippine Senate and the House of Representatives;
2. assess the performance of the Philippine Congress;
3. discuss the impact the Congress’s performance on Philippine development; and
4. articulate a position or advocacy to a Philippine legislator through a formal correspondence.

I.INTRODUCTION

A. What I Need To Know?

This lesson gives the functions of the legislative branch and the
process of making laws. The legislative branch of the government,
where laws are enacted, consists of the Senate (upper house) and
the House of Representatives (lower house).

B. What’s New?

“The more corrupt the state, the more numerous

The laws.”
-Tacitus

The students are encouraged to make their own advocacy and

propose laws to their legislators. Proposing legislation is basically

PHILIPPINE POLITICS AND GOVRNANCE I JULIET SILANG 2

of the ways by which people can participate in the political process and governance in the country.

II. DEVELOPMENT

A. What I know?
Identify which of the following candidates is qualified to run as a president of the Philippines. Justify your choice
using the concepts you have learned from the previous lesson. Write your answer on the space provided.

1. Jerick Babaril: PhD in Business Adminisration, 35yeras old, with political experience as a local executive.
2. Oliver Tall: naturalized Filipino (originally a German), 50 years old, Harvard graduate.
3. Genesis Naliko: registered voter, 41 years old, high school graduate
4. Dandan Pito: 55 years old, natural-born Filipino, former president of the Philippines
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
B. What’s in?
Underline the correct word/phrase for each blank to complete the paragraph.

The Congress of the Philippines is composed of the (Senate, Department of Justice) and the (Municipality,
House of Representatives). The main function of the Congress is to (make laws, interpret the existing laws). A (bill,
resolution) is a draft of law presented to a legislature for enactment. A (bill, resolution), on the other hand, is presented
to convey the sentiments of the Congress.

C. What is it?

The legislative power of the government is vested upon the Congress of the
Philippines in accordance with the 1987 Constitution. The Congress is divided into
two chambers: The House of Representatives (lower house) and the Senate of the
Philippines (upper house).

The senate of the Philippines is composed of 24 senators elected at large while the House of Representatives
is composed of not more than 250 member, 20% of which is composed of party-list representatives. A qualified
candidate for both the Senate and the House of Representatives must be natural-born citizen of the Philippines able to
read and write, and a registered vote. The difference is that the Senate requires that the person must be at least 35
years old and resident of the Philippines for not less than two years before Election Day. On the other hand, a candidate
for the House needs to be at least 25 years old and a resident of the Philippines for at least one year in the district where
he/she will be elected (except for party-list representatives).

The term of the office for the elected senators and representatives starts at noon of 30 th day of June following
their election. The senators will serve for six years and shall not serve for more than consecutives terms. The
representatives, also known as congressmen/women, serve for three years and shall not hold office for more than three
consecutive terms. In case of vacancy in the Congress, under Section 9 of Article VI, special maybe called o fill such
vacancy in the manner prescribed by law, but the senator of the Member of the House of Representatives thus elected
shall serve only for the unexpired term.

The primary function of the legislatives branch is the creation, enactment, and amendments of laws. Proposed
laws may come from the senators or representatives themselves, the people they represent (district, province, or the
party), or the two branches of the government. These proposals are drafted into a bill.

PHILIPPINE POLITICS AND GOVRNANCE I JULIET SILANG 3

 A bill is a draft of law presented to legislation for enactment, by the approval by Congress and the president of
the Republic.

The basic process for the creation or amendment of a law begins with a bill drafted by a senator or
representative and filled for the first reading. The first reading is where the Senate President or the Speaker of the
House reads out the title, bill number, and author’s name, and then assigns the bill to the proper Senate or House
Committee.

The author(s) or the concerned committee will send out an invitation to various concerned parties, agencies,
and stakeholders for a public hearing of the bill to review the proposed bill and give their comments during the
deliberations. The concerned committee can hold a technical working group meeting for specific changes to the
provisions such as a proper concepts, correction of grammar, and deletion or addition of certain phrases or words.

After the approval of the bill by the committee members, a committee report is then filed with its approved
version of the bill to the Committee on Rules for the second reading. In the second reading, the author of the bill or the
chairperson of the committee delivers a sponsorship speech. It is followed by a period of interpellation wherein other
senators or the representatives may debate or ask further questions to the sponsor of the bill. After the interpellation,
the senators or representatives may make some amendments.

In reviewing a bill, there are some things to consider:

1. Does the bill conform to the provisions of the Constitution?
2. What is the main issue that the bill is trying to address?
3. What are the methods that the bill is trying to propose in order to answer the issue?
4. Are there alternative means to address the issue?
5. Who will benefit from the bill if it is enacted into law? How will the benefits be given? Will this create further
problems?
6. Is there sufficient fund for the law? Where will the government get the fund needed to enforce the law?

The representatives or the senators again vote for the passage of the bill on second reading. “As a general
rule, a bill must pass both the Senate of the House” (Defensor-Santiago 2002). Note that two versions of a bill
are processed simultaneously in both chambers. The final version of the approved bill by both chambers is then
printed for approval. Or if there are disagreements between the two chambers on the final version of the bill, a
Bicameral Conference Committee is created to make the necessary changes before printing out the final version
of the bill. Another period of interpellation follows after which the senators or the representatives vote for the
third reading of the bill. Upon the last reading a bill, no amendment shall be allowed.

Upon approval of the final version of the bill by both chambers, the Senate President and the Speaker of the
House shall sign the final copy now known as the enrolled bill and send it to the president or approval and
signature. The bill becomes a law upon the signing of the president. In case of objection from the president, the
enrolled bill is vetoed and return to the House where the bill is originated. If the House of Representatives or the
Senate still reconsiders the bill, at least two-thirds of all the members of the House shall vote for the bill to
become a law. Failure by the president to act on the enrolled bill within 30 days upon his or her receipt, the bill
becomes a law as if the president has signed it.

Other than bill, each House can make of resolutions. A resolution “conveys principles and sentiments of the
members of the Senate or the House of Representative.” There are three different types of resolution:

1. Joint resolutions – require the approval of both chambers of Congress and the signature of the
president, and have the force and effect of a law if approved.

2. Current resolutions – used for matters affecting the resolutions of both chambers of Congress and must
be approved in the same form by both houses, but are not transmitted to the president his/her
signature and therefore have no force and effect of a law.

PHILIPPINE POLITICS AND GOVRNANCE I JULIET SILANG 4

 3. Simple resolutions – deal with matters entirely within the prerogative of one chamber of Congress; are
not referred to the president for his/her signature and therefore have no force and effect of a law.

III. ENGAGEMENT
A. What’s more?
I. Answer the following questions on the space provided.

1. What is more beneficial for a democratic country, to vote for a representative or to allow the people to do
the processes of legislation? Explain your answer.
________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________

2. Do you think laws in our country are not properly enforced? Explain your answer.
________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________

3. With the current set-up of legislation, what do you propose that members of Congress must do to represent
or serve their constituents better?
________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________

B. What I can do?

I. Think of current problems or issues in your community. Make a proposal for a law that may address
the problem. Follow the format of a house bill (see your saved photo or document of bill from the
previous activity). Provide short bond paper for this activity.

II. Cite three things that made him a notable person in history and politics.

1. _______________________________________________________

2. _______________________________________________________

3. _______________________________________________________

HO CHI MINH PHILIPPINE POLITICS AND GOVRNANCE I JULIET SILANG 5

 A. What other enrichment activities can I engage in (additional activities)?
Visit the website of either the House of Representatives or the Senate of the Philippines. Choose a bill on their
sites. Save or download the bill, you may want to have a screenshot of this bill to be used for the next activity.
Study the bill and prepare your comments in the following format:

Name:______________________________
Grade and Section:____________________
School:_____________________________
Bill Number and Title:____________________________________________
Author(s):______________________________________________________
Introduction: (short introduction on the purpose of the bill)
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
General Comment: (your opinion of the bill in general)
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
Specific Comment: (comments on provisions like what should be added or deleted in the bill,
errors in language, if any, etc.)
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________

IV. ASSIMILATION
A. What I have learned?
Summarize what you have learned in this lesson in three to five sentences. Provide two or three sentences
for your opinion on the Philippine legislature.

PHILIPPINE POLITICS AND GOVRNANCE I JULIET SILANG 6

 B. What I can do (Assessment)?
Suppose you are a Legislative Liaison Specialist of the Congress. You are being interviewed by a journalist for a
documentary on the functions of the Philippine Congress. Answer the following questions of the journalist on
the space provided.

Journalist: Describe briefly the function of the Congress.

1. Specialist:______________________________________________________________

Journalist: What is the process of making law?

2. Specialist:________________________________________________________________________________

Journalist: What is the difference between a bill and a resolution?

3. Specialist:________________________________________________________________________________

Journalist: What happens if the president does not approve a bill submitted to him/her by Congress?
4. Specialist:________________________________________________________________________________

Journalist: Can the bill be enacted even without the signature of the president? How?
5. Specialist:________________________________________________________________________________

Journalist: As an ordinary citizen, how can I propose a bill to the Congress?

6. Specialist:________________________________________________________________________________

Journalist: What are the possible reasons for the shelving of a bill?
7. Specialist:________________________________________________________________________________

Journalist: What are the differences and similarities between a senator and a representative?
8. Specialist:________________________________________________________________________________

Journalist: If you would rate the performance of the current Congress from 1-10 with 10 as the highest, what
would your rating be? Why?
9. Specialist:________________________________________________________________________________

Journalist: Any tip for those who want to be a lawmaker?

10. Specialist:________________________________________________________________________________
REFLECTION:
I understand that
______________________________________________
_____________________________________________.

I realize that
______________________________________________
______________________________________________.

NAME:________________________________________________
-END OF MODULE-

PHILIPPINE POLITICS AND GOVRNANCE I JULIET SILANG 7

 Reference:
Pawilen, R.A. 2017 and Pawilen, Reidan M. 2017. Philippine Politics and Governance (First Edition).
Sampaloc, Manila: Rex Bookstore, Inc.
www.google.com

PHILIPPINE POLITICS AND GOVRNANCE I JULIET SILANG 8