POLITICS,

YOU AND
DEMOCRACY
POLITICS : WHO SAID WHAT?

1. A human being is a political animal. (Aristotle)

2.Politics is the authoritative allocation of values in a
society. (David Easton)
3.Politics refers to any activity involving human
beings associated together in relationship of power
and authority where conflict occurs. (Robert Dahl)
4.Politics is a way ruling in divided
societies without violence. (Bernard Crick)
5. The end justifies the means.(Niccollo Machiavelli)
 Concept of
Political Science,
Politics
and
Governance
 Political Science

It is the systematic study of and

reflection upon politics. Politics
usually describes the processes
by which people and institutions
exercise and resist power.
Political Science is the systematic
study of the state and government.

The word political is derived from the

Greek polis, meaning a city, of what
today would be equivalent of
sovereign state.

Science comes from the Latin scire,

“to know”
Different views of politics:

a. Politics as the art of government

b. Politics as public affairs
c. Politics as compromise and
consensus
d. Politics as power & distribution
of resources
Scope of Political Science:

1. Political theory
2. Public Law
3. Public Administration
Political Theory
It refers to the entire body of
doctrines relating to the origin,
form, behaviour, and purposes
of the state are dealt with the
study of political theory.
Public Law – the (a)
organization of governments, (b)
the limitations upon government
authority, (c) the powers and
duties of governmental offices
and officers, and (d) the
obligations of one state to
another are handled in the study
of public law.
Private Laws are the one which
govern the relations among
individuals, public law is so
specialized that separate courses
offered in each of its
subdivisions, namely: (a)
constitutional law, (b)
administrative law, and (c)
international Law.
Public Administration -
attention is focused upon
methods and techniques used
in the actual management of
the state affairs by executive,
legislative, and judicial
branches of government.
 THE PHILIPPINE GOVERNMENT
The Philippines is a democratic
and a republican state.
Sovereignty resides in the people
and all government authority
emanates from them.
Source:
Article II, section 1 of the 1987 Constitution
THE PHILIPPINE GOVERNMENT

Our government is…

@ for the people
@ by the people
@ of the people
 The 1987 Constitution of the R.P.
PREAMBLE
We, the sovereign Filipino people imploring the
aide of Almighty God, in order to build a just
and humane society and establish a
government that shall embody our ideals and
aspirations, promote the common good,
conserve and develop our patrimony, and
secure to ourselves and our posterity the
blessings of independence and democracy
under the rule of law and a regime of truth,
justice, freedom, love, equality, and peace, do
ordain and promulgate this Constitution.
 Concepts of State

Meaning of the State

State is a community of persons
more or less numerous, permanently
occupying a definite portion of territory,
having a government of their own to
which the great body of inhabitants
render obedience, and enjoying freedom
from external control.
Elements of State:
1. People
2. Territory
3. Government
4. Sovereignty
1. People
This refers to the mass of population
living within the state. There is no
requirement as to the number of people
that should compose a state. But it
should be neither too small nor too large:
small enough to be well-governed and
large enough to be self-sufficing.
The smallest state is Vatican. China has
the largest population.
2. Territory
Components of Territory:

1. Terrestrial/land mass
2. Aerial
3. Fluvial
4. Maritime Domain
The smallest state is Vatican
State with an area of 0.43
square kilometres. It would fit
in Rizal Park in Manila. The
biggest state is Canada with
an area of 3,852,000 square
miles which covers a surface
nearly as large as Europe.
The Philippines has a total land
area of about 115,707 square
miles .

3. Government
It refers to the agency through
which the will of the state is
formulated, expressed and
carried out.
4. Sovereignty
It is the supreme power of the
state to command and enforce
obedience to its will from
people within its jurisdiction,
and to have freedom from
foreign control.
Two manifestations of Sovereignty:
1. Internal or the power of the state
to rule within its territory;
2. External or the freedom of the
state to carry out its activities without
subjection or control by other states.
External sovereignty is often referred
to as independence.
How do you treat the Claim of the Phils.
Over Sabah? Is it imperium or
dominium?
Answer:
It is both imperium and dominium. We
seek to own exclusively Sabah and in
so owning, we have to exercise our
sovereignty to govern the same.
 Characteristics of Sovereignty

1. Permanence;
2. Exclusivity;
3. Comprehensiveness;
4. Absoluteness;
5. Individuality;
6. Inalienability; and
7. Imprescritibility
Permanence means it exist in the same form
forever or for a very long time.

Exclusivity means it is limited to a group of

people.

Comprehensiveness means including everything,

so as to be complete comprehensive
knowledge of the subject.

Absoluteness means possessing unlimited

power: having total power and authority.
Individuality means the state or condition of
being separate from others.

Inalienability means it is impossible to take

away or not able to be transferred or taken
away, e.g. because of being protected by
law.

Imprescribility it means not to be taken

away or impossible to remove or violate the
people's imprescriptible rights.
 Governance

1. manner of government: the system or

manner of government;

2. state of governing a place: the act or

state of governing a place;

3. authority: control or authority

 ADMINISTRATION

It means the management of

the affairs of a business,
organization, or institution.
 GOVERNMENT
Forms of Government:

1.As to number of persons

exercising sovereign powers;
2. As to extent of powers
exercised by the central or
national government;
3. As to relationship between the
executive and the legislative
branches of the government;
4. As to source of power or
authority:
1. As to number of persons
exercising sovereign powers:
A. Government by one
A1) Monarchy or one in which
the supreme and final authority
is in the hands of a single
person without regard to the
source of his election or the
nature or duration of his tenure.
Monarchies are further
classified into:
Monarchy, form of government
in which one person has the
hereditary right to rule as head
of state during his or her
lifetime; the term is also applied
to the state so governed.
Monarchs include such rulers as
kings and queens, emperors and
empresses, emirs, tsars, and
Kaisers.
Two types of Monarchical
government:
1. Absolute Monarchy or one in
which the ruler rules by divine
right; and
2. Limited monarchy or one in
which the ruler rules in
accordance with a constitution.
The power of the monarch
varies from absolute to very
limited; the latter is exemplified
in modern-day constitutional
monarchies.
A2 Authoritarian or one in which
the supreme power of the
dictator whose power is usually
through force.
1. strict and demanding
obedience: favoring strict rules
and established authority;
2. demanding political
obedience: belonging to or
believing in a political system in
which obedience to the ruling
person or group is strongly
enforced.
B. Government by few
B1 Aristocracy or one in
which political power is
exercised by few privileged
class.
1. people of highest social
class: people of noble families
or the highest social class
2. superior group: a group
believed to be superior to all
others of the same kind
3. government by elite:
government of a country by a
small group of people,
especially a hereditary nobility
4. state run by elite: a state
governed by an aristocracy.
B2 Oligarchy
1. small governing group: a
small group of people who
together govern a nation or
control an organization, often for
their own purposes;
2. entity ruled by oligarchy: a
nation governed or an
organization controlled by an
oligarchy;
3. government by small group:
government or control by a
small group of people.
Sources of their power:
1. By birth 2. By wealth 3. By wisdom
In an aristocracy, although the
power of government is wielded by
a few, theoretically the
administration of government is
carried on for the welfare of the
many.
C. Government by many

C1 Democracy or one in which

political power is exercised by
the majority of the people. It is
further classified into:
C1.1 Direct or pure democracy or
one in which the will of the state is
formulated or expressed directly
and immediately through the
people in a mass meeting or
primary assembly rather than
through the medium of
representatives chosen by the
people to act for them.
C1.2 Indirect, representative or
republican democracy or one in
which the will of the state is
formulated and expressed through
the agency of a relatively small
and select body of persons chosen
by the people to act as their
representatives.
2. As to extent of powers
exercised by the central or
national government:
A. Unitary government or
one in which the control of
national and local affairs is
exercised by the national
government;
B. Federal government or one
in which the powers of
government are divided
between two sets of organs,
one for national affairs and the
other for local affairs, each
organ being supreme within its
own sphere.
3. As to relationship between the
executive and the legislative
branches of the government:
A. Parliamentary government or
cabinet gov’t. is one in which the
executive and legislative branch of
the government are dependent or
executive branch is part of the
legislative branch.
B. Presidential government or
one in which the state makes
the executive independent from
the legislative.
Distinctions bet. Presidential &
Parliamentary
In parliamentary
governments, of which the
United Kingdom, India, and
Canada are examples, the
executive branch is subordinate
to the legislature.
 In presidential
governments, such as in the
U.S., the executive is
independent of the legislature,
although many of the
executive's actions are subject
to legislative review.
4. As to source of power or
authority:
A. De facto is one not so
constituted or founded with the
existing constitution but has the
general support of the people
and has effective control of the
territory over which it exercises
its powers.
B. De Jure is one which is
constituted or founded in
accordance with the existing
constitution of the state but has
no control of the territory.

C. Hereditary & Elective

 A government of separated
powers assigns different political
and legal powers
1. The legislative branch has
the power to make laws.
2.The executive branch has the
authority to administer the law—
primarily by bringing
lawbreakers to trial—and to
appoint officials and oversee the
administration of government
responsibilities.
3. The judicial branch has the
power to try cases brought to
court and to interpret the
meaning of laws under which
the trials are conducted.
 CONSTITUTION

- it is a system of fundamental
laws or principles for the
government of nation, society,
corporation
- it may be either written or
unwritten.
 It is a written enactment by the
direct action of the people by
which the fundamental powers of
the government are established,
defined and limited and by which
those powers are distributed
among several departments for
their safe and useful exercise for
teh benefit of the body politic.
 CONSTITUTION OF THE
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILS.
1. The Malolos Constitution
2. The 1935 Constitution
3. The 1973 Constitution
4. The 1986 Freedom Constitution
5. The 1987 Constitution
Basic Principles underlying the
new Constitution:
1. Recognition of the Aid of
Almighty God; (preamble)
2. Sovereignty of the People
(Art. II Sec. 1)
2. Sovereignty of the People
(Art. II Sec. 1)
3. Renunciation of war as an
instrument of national policy
(Art. II Sec. 2)
4. Supremacy of civilian authority
over military (Art. II Sec. 3)
5. Separation of church and
State (Art. II Sec. 6)
6. Recognition of the importance
of the family as basic social
institution and of the vital role of
the youth in nation-building (Art.
II Secs. 12, 13 & Art. XV)
7. Guarantee of human rights
(Art. III Secs. 1-22)
8. Government through suffrage
(Art. V Sec. 1)
9. Separation of powers (Art. VI,
Sec. 1)
10. Independence of the judiciary
(Art. VIII Sec.1)
11. Guarantee of local autonomy
(Art. X, Sec 2)
12. High sense of public service
morality & accountability of
public officers (Art. XI, Sec. 1)
13. Nationalization of natural
resources and certain private
enterprises affected with public
interest (Art. XII Secs. 2,3,17
18)
14. Non-suability of the State (Art
II. Sec. 16)
15. Rule of majority
16. Government of laws and not
of men
 Article XVII
AMENDMENTS OR
REVISION
Sec. 1 Any amendment to, or
revision of, this Constitution may be
proposed by:

(1)The Congress, upon a vote of

three-fourths of all its Members; or
(2) A constitutional convention.
 Amendment is a change
effected in some parts of the
Constitution without
considering the whole
document.
 Revision is a rewriting or
substantial changing in the
Constitution viewed in it
entirety.
Importance of amending
procedure:
No Constitution, however
gifted its framers, is likely to
prove adequate for an indefinite
period. There are problems that
no human foresight can
anticipate.
 As conditions are never
static, so must the fundamental
law be freed from the constraint
of rigidity. While it is reduced to
writing, it should not be devoid
of the element of flexibility.
Methods by which
amendment/revision may be
proposed:
Sec. 1&2 prescribe three (3)
methods for proposing ant
amendment to, or revision of the
Constitution, namely:
1. By Congress, as a constituent
assembly, upon a vote of three-
fourths of all its members
voting separately;
2. By Constitutional Convention
called for the purpose;
3. By the People directly,
through Initiative upon petition
of the required number of
registered voters.
N.B. The vote requirement is
more stringent if the
amendments are proposed by
Congress itself. This is to insure
more deliberations and deeper
study and consideration of the
merits of the proposed changes
to the fundamental law.
Sec. 2, Art. XVII
Amendments to this
Constitution may likewise be
directly proposed by the people
through initiative upon petition
of at least twelve per centum of
the total number of registered
voters, of which every legislative
district must be represented by
at least three per centum of the
registered voters therein.
 No amendments under this
section shall be authorized
within five years following the
ratification of this Constitution
nor oftener than once every five
years thereafter.
 The Congress shall provide
for the implementation of the
exercise of this right.
Amendments proposed by the
people through initiative.

Sections 2 & 4 (par.2) enshrined

for the first time the “people
power” to effect changes in the
fundamental law. Under the
concept of initiative (Art.VI, Sec.
32).
 The people may directly
propose amendments to the
Constitution should Congress
be remiss in its duty under the
two traditional modes available
to it.
The requirements are:
1. There must be a petition of at
least 12% of the total number
of registered voters;
2. Every legislative district must
be represented by at least 3% of
the registered voters thereof;
The amendment through
initiative is not made within five
(5) years thereafter.

Congress is required to
provide by law for the
implementation of the exercise
of this right.
 Once the required number of
voters’ signature is complied with,
Congress is bound to submit the
proposed amendments to the
people in a plebiscite.
 The above requirements are
designed to ensure that a sizeable
portion of the population really
desire to propose the amendment
and at the same time avoid
frequent changes in the
fundamental law which are not
conducive to political stability.
Sec. 3, Art. XVII
The Congress may, by a vote
of two-thirds of all its Members,
call a constitutional convention,
or by a majority vote of all its
members, submit to the
electorate the question of calling
such a convention.
 Method by which constitutional
convention may be called.
1. Congress by two-thirds vote of
all its members may call a
constitutional convention; or
2. Congress by a majority vote of
all its members (in case neither
the ¾ nor 2/3 vote can be
mustered) may toss the
question to call a constitutional
Convention to the electorate in
an election.
 Constitutional Convention is a
body assembled for the
expressed purpose of framing
the constitution, or revising the
existing Constitution, or
formulating amendments to it for
the approval of the electorate.
Sec. 4, Art. XVII
Any amendment to, or revision
of, this Constitution under Section 1
hereof shall be valid when ratified
by a majority of the votes cast in a
plebiscite which shall be held not
earlier than sixty days nor later
than ninety days after approval of
such amendment.
 Any amendment under Sec. 2
hereof shall be valid when ratified
by a majority of the votes cast in a
plebiscite which shall be held not
later than sixty days nor later than
ninety days after certification by
the Commission on Elections of
the sufficiency of the petition.
 Ratification means the direct
approval by the people of the
amendment to, or revision of
the constitution. It is the final
act to make any change in the
constitution valid as part
thereof.
 1987 CONSTITUTION

Preamble

Q. Is preamble an integral part of

the Constitution? What is the
purpose of Preamble? Is it a
source of substantive power?
Answer:
The Preamble is not an
integral part of the Constitution.
It merely serves to give an
introductory statement and
convey to the reader the
principal objectives sought to be
accomplished by the
Constitution in broad-terms.
Q. What is the purpose of Preamble?
Answer: While the preamble is not an
integral part of the Constitution yet
its true office is to expound on the
scope and nature, extent and
application of the powers actually
conferred by the Constitution and
not to substantially create them.
 It is an aid or devise to help
ascertain the meaning of
provisions of the Constitution
when the intendment of the
framers are unclear and
ambiguous.
Q. Is it a source of substantive power?

Answer:
The Preamble cannot be
considered as a source of substantive
power unless apart from the
Preamble, it is to be found in express
form in the distribution of powers.
Difference between 1935 & 1987 Constitution
esp. In Preamble

Q. In both the 1973 & 1987 Constitutions

the Preamble starts with the declaration
“we, the sovereign Filipino people,”
while the 1935 Constitution started with
the “The Filipino people.” What is the
significance of the variance in
phraseology?
Answer:
The phrase “The Filipino
people” as used in the 1935
Constitution creates the first
impression that the Filipinos were
allowed to adopt a Constitution of
their own only upon permission of
a foreign master.
 Article I National Territory

Territory is an area of the earth’s

surface which is the subject of
sovereign rights and interests. It is
that definite or aliquot area of the
earth’s surface within which a State
exercises jurisdiction, subject to the
limitations imposed by international
law.
 Q. What is the territory of the
Philippines?
Answer: NATIONAL TERRITORY
(Art. I)
“The National Territory
comprises the Philippine
archipelago, with all the islands
and waters embraced therein,
and all other territories over
which the Philippines has
sovereignty or jurisdiction,
consisting of its terrestrial,
fluvial and aerial domains,
including its territorial shelves,
and other submarine areas.
 The waters around, between,
and connecting the islands of
the archipelago, regardless of
their breadth and dimensions,
form part of the internal waters
of the Philippines.
 Q. Discuss the archipelagic
doctrine

Answer: The archipelagic

doctrine which is now an
accepted principle of public
international law means the
integration of a group of islands
to the sea and their oneness so
that together they constitute one
unit, one country and one state.
A single base line is drawn
around the islands by joining
appropriate points of the outermost
islands of the archipelago with
straight base lines. The waters
within the baselines are considered
as internal waters.
Q. What are the modes of acquiring
territory?

Answer:
The conventional modes of
acquiring territory are:

1. Discovery – it is the oldest mode

of acquiring territory.
To be valid and effective,
discovery must be accompanied
by occupation, management
and administration of the island
discovered.
2. Prescription – the continued
occupation of a territory for a
long period of time by one state.
3. Accretion – it is a process
where the land area of a State
caused by the operation of
either the forces of nature, or
artificially, through human labor,
is increased.
4. Cession – is a bilateral agreement
whereby one State transfers over a
definite portion of a territory to
another.

5. Conquest – is the acquisition of a

territory by the use of force which
reduces the vanquished territory to the
submission of the conquering State.
 SABAH

The region came under British

control in 1877 when a British
trading syndicate, later called the
British North Borneo (Chartered)
Company, obtained concessions
from the sultans of Brunei and
Sulu and other rulers in the region.
 The British North Borneo
Company, under a royal charter
granted in 1881, undertook the
administration of the region.
In 1888 North Borneo was
made a British protectorate, but
the company retained its
administrative powers until 1946,
when British North Borneo was
proclaimed a Crown Colony.
 During World War II (1939-
1945) the region was occupied
by Japanese forces. When the
Federation of Malaysia came
into existence on September 16,
1963, British North Borneo,
renamed Sabah, became a
member state.
 Spratly ISLANDS

Spratly Islands, group of more

than 600 islets, coral reefs, sand
bars, and atolls in the South China
Sea. The islands are located to the
northwest of Brunei, the
Malaysian state of Sabah, and
the Philippine island of
Palawan.
 Ownership of some or all of the
Spratlys is disputed between
China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Brunei,
Malaysia, and the Philippines. The
largest of the 12 main islets is Itu
Aba, with a total area of 36
hectares (90 acres); none is
permanently inhabited.
 The most significant types of
local wildlife are seabirds and
turtles. Geological surveys indicate
that the Spratlys lie atop vast oil
and gas reserves, perhaps greater
than any previously discovered.
The islands also lie along important
shipping lanes.
 The Spratly Islands were
controlled by France from 1933 to
1939, by Japan during World War II
(1939-1945), and after the war
China established a garrison on Itu
Aba, which Taiwan retained
following its split with mainland
China in 1949.
 All the competing claimants
except Brunei maintain military
installations on one or more of
the islands. There are periodic
armed clashes in the region; in
1988 more than 70 people were
killed during a confrontation
between China and Vietnam.
 The Spratly Islands are
regarded as a potential
flashpoint for regional conflict,
especially because China has
so far resisted submitting the
dispute to international courts.
Q. What is a Republican State of
which the Philippines is one
ordained in Section 1, Art. II of
the 1987 Constitution?
Answer: A Republican is one
which derives all its powers,
directly or indirectly, from the
great body of the people and is
administered by persons
holding their offices for a limited
period or during good
behaviour.
 A republic is a representative
democracy. And the essence of
republicanism is popular
representation and ultimate
control by the people.
 In other words, a republican
government is one in which the
powers of government are
placed in the hands of persons
chosen directly or indirectly by
the people.
According to supreme court;
Republican State is a
“government of the people, by,
the people, & for the people.
 Representative government
wherein the powers and
duties of sovereignty and are
exercised and discharged for
the common for the common
good and general welfare.
 Q. What are the characteristics of a
Republican State

Characteristics of Republican State

are:

1. The Existence of a Bill of rights (Art.

III);
2. The observance of the rule of law; is a
government of law and not of men,
4. The observance of the principle
that the State cannot be sued
without its consent;

5. The observance of the principle

that Congress cannot pass
irreparable laws;
6. The observance of the principle of separation of
powers and of checks and balance.

7. The presence of election through popular will or the

right of suffrage,;
8. The observance of the public officers known as
administrative law.