CHAPTER 8

THE POLITICAL SELF:

THE FILIPINO CITIZEN
 History has shown us how Filipino identity has
evolved from the pre-colonial period and the
present. We were shaped by the wars and powers
that usurped our land, that bowing down to their
SEEKING definition of who we are seems to be the recourse.
In the process of this acceptance, we have forgotten
who we are. the current movement globalization is
THE also threatening that thin and vulnerable definition
that we have come up with. Our resilience and
adaptability made us embrace other people’s
FILIPINO culture, showing aside our tradition, values and
even some what our identity. The independence and
the constitution ‘given’ to us declared that we are a
IDENTITY Filipino citizen. But what exactly does that mean?
What does it mean to be a Filipino Citizen?
According to the 1987 Philippine Constitution, Art 4, Sec.
1, these are the citizens of the Philippines at the time of
the adoption of this constitution;

1. Those whose fathers or mothers are citizens of

the Philippines;
2. Those born before January 17, 1973, of Filipino
mothers, who elect Philippine citizenship upon
reaching the age of majority; and
3. Those who are naturalized in accordance of law.
Such identification as enshrined in the constitution is very
helpful but the challenge is how far and up to what extent do
we feel this citizenship? When we say I am a Filipino Citizen,
does it necessarily translate to I have a Filipino nationality?
Is there a sense of nationalism that we can truly and proudly
say, I am a Filipino and Philippines is my homeland?
Unfortunately, such technical definition might not be
translated to our beliefs and traditions, especially when we
go deep to the marginalized Filipinos. So the quest
continues,. Just who are we as a people? What are roles we
are supposed to support?
 The role of the young people cannot be ignored in the
HISTORICAL shaping of our identity for it is from their ranks where
Rizal came from. Rizal was a person of enlightened
BACKGROUN education – one of the Ilustrados, whose heightened
conscience made it difficult for him to forget the poor
D INDIO TO plight of his people. At an early age, his genius made him
cognizant of the racial disparity demonstrated towards
FILIPINO the Filipinos at a time when they were called the
derogatory term – Indio. This recognition instilled in him
a sense of responsibility to seek the true identity of the
Filipinos, one which is removed from the concept of
Indios (stupid, barbaric, idiotic) as claimed by the Spanish
colonizers.
Searching the annals of library for history books that will support his
thesis that a Filipinos are not Indios – he even reached England for the
investigation. It was there that he discovered Antonio de Morga’s book,
which he later annotated and at the same time corrected the errors
commited by the Spanish chronicler regarding his understanding of the
pre-colonial Filipino practices and traditions.
According to the historian Leon Ma. Guerrero, Rizal had race jealousy.
This race jealousy gave Rizal impassioned pursuit towards proving that
Filipinos are not Indios and that they are a race worthy of being given
equal opportunity and freedom as that of its colonizer. Thus, at a time
when the use of the term Filipino was reserved only for the elites, Dr.
Rizal had the temerity to use it officially in his article The Indolence of
the Filipino People. It was a bold move that successful announced, we are
Filipinos and we are not indios.
We have come a long way since then. The
American defeated the Spaniards and
Ameracanized us. This was just briefly
interrupted by the presence of Japanese and
the British. After the WWII, we have
assimilated the American lifestyle- at a much
faster rate than with the Spanish. The strong
presence is seen in our language, form of
Government, names etc.
 The inception of democracy was derived from the colonizer’s
(specifically the Americans) traditions and continued by the
elite (who took over from where the proletariats started when
the Spaniards were defeated). This ideology was handed
down to us by the Americans and we have been taught to
DEMOCRACY pattern ourselves according to their brand of government. The
idea of democracy did not emerge from our identity according
From Theirs to the definition given by our colonizers, most especially the
US.
To Ours Therefore, there is a need to re-write our definition of
democracy. It has to be a definition that will tell us this is OUR
government, written by the sweat of its people and guarded by
their hearts.
 What we face today is a people who embrace ideology of
Perception Of A democracy. The problem lies in how we can translate this idea into
everyday practice so that people can fully appreciate it.
Filipino’s Role Art 2, Sec 5 of the 1987 Philippine Constitution states:
in A Democratic The maintenance of the peace and order, the protection of life,
liberty, and property, and the promotion of the general welfare are
Setting essential for the enjoyment by all the people of the blessings of
democracy.
According to this article, three things should be provided by the
government before we can enjoy democracy
(1)Maintenance of peace and order,
(2)Protection of life, liberty and property;
(3)Promotion of general welfare
We demand, as a citizen enjoying the full rights provided by the
constitution, that we must have all these three.
Otherwise, we may not be able to fulfill our role as a citizen in a
democratic setting. If we cannot have these three, then we will not
be able to reach our full potential and make a clear definition of our
political self. The absence of those three may create the lack of
empathy towards nationhood.
According to Zialcita, F. (1997), effective citizenship is one
where people know that they can depend on themselves to help
the state because they are productive and can build things,
“people who come up with ideas and resources; people who are
bold; people who are accountable.”
But such participation will not be successful if we keep a
‘me/us family only’ attitude. In the same conference , it was
found out that one of the missing ingredients in our democratic
practice is the lack of concern towards the common good.
Another finding made during the project was the consensus
regarding redistributive democracy.
Filipino Citizenship vs Me,
Family, Institution, Cultural
Citizenship
As for the citizenship, the perception was almost the
same as the definition given by March and Olsen – an
identity defined by a bundle of rights and duties and
by an awareness of others in a similar position.
An image of the typical good citizen was drawn
(Diokno, 1997) – diligent taxpayer, honest voter, one
who follows the traffic rules, etc. aside from that,
one also has to know how to assert one’s rights and
defend those who cannot defend themselves, cares
for the environment and honors equality between
men and women,.
 Philippines Political Culture – A
Problem of Variation
In assessing the Philippine Political Culture, it is
necessary for us to understand the cultural background
of the citizens and when I say citizens, this would include
the majority and the countless, nameless minority out
there. This is important because as has been discussed
earlier, one of the problems is the way we prioritize the
immediate community we are in – in this case the family.
Thus, if the citizens feel removed from the bigger
community to which they belong, then we cannot expect
much nationalism from them.
There are culturally two categories of communities:

1. Minority – They are culturally, ethnically, or racially distinct

group that coexists with but is subordinate to a more dominant
group. In Figure 12, we can see that they represent 25.3% of
the world population. Emphasis here is given on the subordinate.
They are usually marginalized and perceive themselves (whether
rightly r wrongly) as unrecognized by the national government.
Some examples of such groups are Ifugao of Kala, Bukidnon of
Iloilo, and Muslims.
One of the biggest problems that has to be dealt with concerning
them would be the feeling of alienation since the integration to the
general society has not been made.
2. Majority – would often be characterized by Tagalog/English
speakers and with Christianity/Catholicism as the basis of faith.
How does faith factor in the political culture? The relationship
becomes pronounced during the election where some religious
sectors would go for block voting. In the passing of a law, it can
also be seen that those bills considered to be controversial are
those that primarily go against the practices of the dominant church
– the Catholic Church.
Movement Towards the Common
Good. A Path to a Defined Political
Self
A s a citizen, there should be a sense of belonging and
ownership of that community that will draw out the
protective instinct of that individual towards to notion. The
individual must understand that the protection of this
community is also a protection of the individual citizen. Just
how dangerous is this lack of consistency between
protecting individual right and the right of the community.
Say that one takes a bath everyday so we can be sure that
this person likes to be clean. However this cleanliness is not
transferred to the community. The person will still disregard
garbage cans and make a mess of the place with the thinking
that it is not the individual’s responsibility.
Usually, the values needed for a true
democratic concern for the nation is taught
in these agencies especially the family –
but such is limited proportion only
commensurate to the needs of the family.
What will nurture such communal concern
would be in their socialization process,
where the young people are taught to
follow the rules and take note of their
action when the larger community is
watching their actions. This might consider
how their actions might affect others.
Art 2, Sec 12
The state recognizes the sanctity of family
life and shall protect and strengthen the
family as a basic autonomous social
institution…
Developing a Democratic Culture
What hinders the growth of the culture of democracy?
As suggested by Zialcita (1997, p39-68), in order for us to
establish a democratic culture, the following values
arenecessary;
1. Respect for and affirmation of the individual. This entails
recognizing that every individual has inherent rights. Thus,
we say one’s rights end where another person’s rights begin.
2. Recognition of the inherent dignity of all human beings. Once
recognition is made od such dignity, then it is easier for us to
treat people as ends in themselves.
3. Concern for the public good. We must understand that our
individual rights are also limited by the power of the state.
The welfare of the state is considered together with the civil
rights.
4. Willingness to listen to others. This is consistent with three
above. If we respect the individual, then we should be giving
time to listen and understand the claim of the individual.
 END OF
PRESENTATION!