POLIT

GOVERN
ICS
ANCE
PHILI
BASIC POLITICAL CONCEPTS
Public Administration and Social Communication
Reported by: Ryan C. Espino
Politics
- denotes a social activity

- is the creation, maintenance and amendment of social norms or rules.

- Is an art and science of the government.

- Is the realm of public affairs or the state.

Governance
- Is the exercise of power/ authority by political leader for the well being at
their country’s citizens or subject.

- Refers to the manner of steering/ governing and or directing and

controlling a group of people/ the state.
 BASIC CONCEPTS OF POLITICS

1. ORDER
- Is the central to the study of politics because it shows different components of human
society.
 STRUCTURES of ORDER

a. COMMUNITY – is one kind of social order which refers to the association

of individual who shares a common identity.

b. GOVERNMENT – is a higher level of social order that exist primarily for the
maintenance and perpetuation of the community.

c. STATE - is the largest social order today and in which the term politics
originally derived.
2. POWER
- The main source of reign of the government. The possession to govern or rule
the state.

3. JUSTICE
- The process of legalizing and penalizing the abuse of political power and
power to rule.
“ If the government gives what people need, protect and respect their rights,

and put the common good over and above the personal interest of the

leaders then there is said to be justice.”

 TWO APPROACHES to the STUDY of POLITICS

• POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY
- It is the traditional approach in which the primary goal is to understand the essence or
the truth about politics.

• POLITICAL SCIENCE
- It is the empirical/ objective approach in which it places little emphasis on abstract and
normative question, and concentrates on a dispassionate and objective of the realities of
politics.
 Importance of Studying Governance
Governance, the people, most especially the citizens, will be aware of the
need for good governance. Consequently, such awareness should move them to
action. For their continued empowerment and sustainable development, they have to
know how to fight for their rights by knowing what to expect from Philippine
governance.
 PROCESSES AND ACTORS IN GOVERNANCE
 Decision-Making and Implementation
- decision-making refers the process by which a person or
group of persons, guided by socio-political structures, arrive at
a decision involving their individual and communal needs and
wants. Implementation is the process that logically follows
the decision.
 Actors and Structures
- An actor is a sector or group or institution that participates
in the process of decision-making and implementation. A
structure refers to an organization or mechanism that formally
or informally guides the decision-making process and sets
into motion the different actors and apparatuses in the
implementation process.
 Informal Actors and Bad Governance
-Their influence is felt more clearly in local governments, such as
organized crime syndicates and powerful families, and in rural
and urban areas. Most often than not, these actors are the cause of
corruption, in that legitimate government objectives are distorted
by their illegal and private interests. Worse, they manipulate
government
officials and agencies, and cause widespread yet
organized violence in the community. In urban and rural areas, for
example, the rich and powerful families control the economy by
controlling the local government officials. They bring about a
controlled environment so that decisions must always favor them.
 INDICATORS
GOOD
GOVERNANCE
1. Participation
- active involvement of all affected and interested parties in
the decision-making process.

Participation is one of the strengths of Philippine governance. The 1987 Philippine

Constitution is replete of provisions dealing with relational and inter-sectoral
governance. The Local Government Act of 1989 was borne out of the need for
decentralization in Philippine governance. As such, these and other related
legislations may be considered as normative standards for good governance.
2. Rule of Law

- Democracy is essentially the rule of law.

- Rule of law demands that the people and the civil society render habitual obedience
to the law. It also demands that the government acts within the limits of the powers
and functions prescribed by the law.

The Philippines does not fare well in this aspect of good governance. In spite of being one of
the oldest democracies in the region, the Philippines ranked as last among seven indexed
Asian countries according to the World Justice Project Rule of Law Index. Generally, the
reasons for ranking last are “lack of respect for law,” “pervasive and systemic corruption in
the government,” and “circumvention of the law.” Lack of respect for law is generally caused
by distrust on the integrity of law enforcement agencies. Order and security are compromised
and criminal justice is rendered ineffectual.
3. Effectiveness and Efficiency

- actors meet the needs of the society means that there is effective
governance. That the valuable resources are utilized, without
wasting or underutilizing any of them, means that there is efficient
governance.
- enhancement and standardization of the quality of public service
delivery consistent with international standards, professionalization of
bureaucracy.

Efforts were made to attain effectiveness and efficiency in Philippine

governance. The Anti-Red Tape Act of 2007 (ARTA), for instance, was
passed to require the setting up of Citizen’s Charter for a simplified
procedure and to facilitate governmental transactions. Also, many
government departments and agencies pursued a rationalization
program to check excessive and redundant staffing.
4. Transparency
- Transparency, as an indicator of good governance, means that people are open to information
regarding decision-making process and the implementation of the same. In legal terms, it
means that information on matters of public concern are made available to the citizens or
those who will be directly affected.
- It also means that transactions involving public interests must be fully disclosed
and made accessible to the people.

Efforts were made in pursuit of transparency in Philippine governance. As far as the

government sector is concerned, the current administration, consistent with its drive of curbing
corruption, promotes honesty and integrity in public service. It is currently pursuing the
passage of the Freedom of Information Bill and other related legislations, as well as
intensifying people’s engagement in local governance.
Transparency in budget and disbursements are, however, still far from being
substantially implemented.
5. Responsiveness
- means that institutions and processes serve all stakeholders in a timely and appropriate
manner. It also means that actors and structures of governance easily give genuine
expression to the will or desire of the people.

Some of the important efforts made to attain responsive governance in the Philippines are
decentralization, creation of citizen’s charter in all frontline agencies (as required by ARTA),
and gender sensitivity programs. First, through decentralization, local governments, which
are more proximate to their constituents, serve more promptly the people, who in turn
become more involved in decision-making. Second, every government agency now has it
Citizen’s Charter, which provides timeframes for every step in attaining frontline services.
Agencies now must also respond to written queries sent by the stakeholders or interested
parties within a period of ten days, otherwise there will be delayed service. However, this
aspect of governance still remains to be one of the causes for the decline of public’s
confidence in the public sector. Although the ARTA has been passed, there is still so much
delay in public service delivery. The failure of the government agencies to explain the
charters to the stakeholders is one of the main reasons why there is still delay.
6. Equity and Inclusiveness
- Equity and inclusiveness means that all the members of the society,
especially the most vulnerable ones or the grassroots level, must be
taken into consideration in policy-making.
- Social equity refers to a kind of justice that gives more opportunity to the less
fortunate members of the society.

The Philippine Government has done extensive efforts in promoting equity and
inclusiveness. The Constitution makes it as one of its state policies the promotion of social justice.
Pursuant to this, the Congress has enacted social legislations like the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform
Law which aims at freeing the farmer tenants from the bondage of the soil. Also, representation in the
Congress, under the party list system, is constitutionally mandated to have sectoral representation of the
underprivileged. Gender and Development programs are in the process of being integrated with the
various structures and institutions in the country. But legislation is one thing; implementation is
another. It is in the faithful implementation of these laws that the country failed. Inequality is especially
felt in the justice system, electoral system, and even in the bureaucracy itself.
7. Consensus Oriented
- Governance is consensus oriented when decisions are made after taking into
consideration the different viewpoints of the actors of the society.

Among the things done by the Philippines in promoting a consensus oriented

governance are: (1) creation of a wide-based of representation in the Congress;
(2) a two-tiered legislature or bicameralism which subjects legislation to the evaluation of
national and district legislators; and (3) necessity of public hearings or consultations of
various governmental policies and actions.
8. Accountability

- Accountability means answerability or responsibility for one’s action. It is based

on the principle that every person or group is responsible for their actions most
especially when their acts affect public interest.
- Accountability comes in various forms: political,
hierarchical, and managerial
officials to the people
accountability. theyaccountability
Political represent. Hierarchical accountability refers to the ordered
refers to the
accountability ofaccountability
the various agencies
of publicand their respective officers and personnel in
relation to their program objectives. Managerial accountability refers to employee
accountability based on organization and individual performance.
The Philippines in the recent years had endeavored to comply with the requirements of
accountability. It had put in action the concept of political accountability as it held
answerable erring public officials involved in graft and corruption and for acts contrary to
the mandate of the constitution. It had also strengthened parliamentary scrutiny through
legislative investigations and creation of special committees exercising oversight functions.
The Office of the Ombudsman, considered as the public watchdog, has become ever so
active in investigating and prosecuting graft and plunders cases. Citizen’s Charter, as
required by ARTA, was also an important tool in promoting professional public service
values. In this area, Philippine governance has done relatively well.
 CURRENT
STATE
GOVERNANC
E
 The Philippines is plagued by bad governance. Based on the six dimensions of
governance in the Worldwide Governance Indicators (WGI), it ranks in the lower half of
the percentile. In 2010-2011, the Philippines ranked only 85th in the Global Competitive
Index (GCI), lagging behind most of its Southeast Asian neighbors. The decline of trust on
the actors of governance and the consequential poor economic condition were brought
about by the systemic corruption among and between public officials and private
organizations. In 2013, it ranked 94th among 177 countries in the Corruption Perception
Index. Among the key institutions in the Philippines perceived to be most corrupt based on
the Global Corruption Index are “political parties,” “judiciary,” “police,” “public officials
and civil servants,” and “legislature.” This means all branches of the Philippine government
are now challenged.
References:
www.tamayaosbc.wordpress.com
www.global_competitiveness_report2015-2016
www.global_competitiveness_report2016-2017