The document discusses the key functions and characteristics of the Philippine Legislative Branch. It has three main parts: 1) The Legislative Branch is constitutionally mandated to create, pass, and repeal laws. It represents the people and debates between unicameral vs. bicameral systems. 2) The two houses of Congress are described - the House of Representatives with 269 members from districts and sectors, and the 24-member Senate elected nationally. 3) Characteristics of Philippine politics are discussed, including patronage politics through political families, economic power translating to political power, and "political turncoatism".

1. The Legislative Branch
Prof. Lourdes Veneracion-Rallonza, PhD
Department of Political Science
Ateneo de Manila University

3. (1) Constitutional
mandate to
create, pass,
repeal laws
(2) Represents
the people

4. Unicameralism vs. Bicameralism in
1986 Constitutional Commission
(Philippines)
Unicameral Bicameral
• More economical & • 2nd chamber direct
efficient representatives of over-all
• Would be more open to interest of the people
the pressure of ‘people • Healthy check agains
power’ hastily passed legislations
• Greater role of media as a • Check against abuse of
partner in politics power
• Importance of national
figures; thus, anti-
parochial

5. Philippine House of Representatives
14th Congress
• Total members: 269
• Representation: 217 (81%) District; 52 (19%)
Sectoral
• Term Profile: 148 (55%), 1st term; 54 (20%), 2nd
term; 67 (25%), 3rd term
• Sex: 202 (75%), male; 56 (21%) female
• Organization: Speaker, Deputy Speakers,
Majority Leader, Minority Leader
• Committees: 58 Standing Committees; 12 Special
Committees
http://www.congress.gov.ph/index.php

6. Politics of
Representation

7. Philippine Senate
• 24 Senators elected nationally
• Organizationally: Senate President,
Senate Pro Tempore, Majority Leader,
Minority Leader
• Committee System
http://www.senate.gov.ph/

8. (3) Investigative powers
(4) Judicial ‘capacity’

9. (5) Can make
or break
governments
(6)
Recruitment
and
socialization

10. Importance of Political Parties: IDEOLOGY
Political Spectrum
LEFT CENTER RIGHT
communism conservatism fascism
socialism liberalism

11. Characterizing the Philippine
Legislature…
• Patronage politics
- political families
- familial kinship by blood or ritual (compadrazgo)
• Economic power begets political power
- land owning class: traditional source
- entrepreneurial & ‘yuppie’ class: new source
• Political turncoatism or balimbing
• Intra-elite conflict
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