The 1987 Constitution of the Philippines

General Considerations:

Political Law

Political law is that branch of public law which deals with the organization and operations of the governmental organs of the State and defines the
relations of the State with the inhabitants of its territory.

Scope of Political Law

 Constitutional Law

 Administrative Law

 Law of Public Officers

 Election Law

 Law on Municipal Corporations

Constitutional Law

- Constitutional law is a study of the structure and powers of the Government of the Republic of the Philippines.

- It also deals with certain basic concepts of Political law, such as the nature of the State, the supremacy of the Constitution, the separation of
powers, and the rule of the majority.

Every citizen, regardless of the calling, should understand the mechanisms and motivations of his government. This must be so because
“sovereignty resides in the people and all government authority emanates from them” (Article II, Section 1, 1987 Constitution). It is upon the active
involvement in public affairs of every Filipino that the success of the Republic of the Philippines will depend.

The Constitution of the Philippines:

Facts

 The 1987 Constitution is the 4th fundamental law to govern the Philippines since it became independent on July 4, 1946.

 1st was the Commonwealth Constitution adopted in 1935

 2nd was the 1973 Constitution - enforced during the Marcos regime at the time when the country was under martial law
following its dubious approval and ratification

 3rd was the Freedom Constitution proclaimed by President Corazon Cojuanco Aquino while the permanent Constitution is still
pending (February 25, 1986)

 Proclamation No. 9 of President C. Aquino - created a Constitutional Commission composed of 50 members appointed by her

 Main argument - it would restrict the power of Presidency as provided

 76.29% ratified , 22.74% against

 Outstanding Features of the 1987 Constitution

 Adopted on February 2, 1987

 Consist of 18 articles

 Notable flaw - verbosity and consequent prolixity

 Revival of the Bicameral Congress of the Philippines and the strictly legal Presidential system.

 The independence of the judiciary has been strengthened, with new provisions for appointment and increase in its authority,
 covering even political questions formerly beyond its jurisdiction.

Supremacy of the Constitution

The Constitution is the basic and paramount law to which all other laws must conform and to which all persons, including the highest officials of the
land.

Concept of the State:

State vs. Nation

State - a legal concept; a community of persons, more or less, numerous, permanently occupying a fixed territory, and possessed of an
independent government organized for political ends to which the great body of inhabitants render habitual obedience.

Nation - a racial or ethnic concept; it indicates a relation of birth or origin and implies a common race, usually characterized by community of
language and customs.

Essential Elements of a State

 People - permanent population, it simply refers to the inhabitants of the State.

 No legal requirement as to numbers, but it me numerous enough to protect themselves and small enough to be easily
administered and sustained

 Must come from both sexes to be able to perpetuate

 Territory - a fixed portion of the surface of the earth inhabited by the people of the State.

 Practical requirement: must be neither too big (difficult to administer and defend) nor too small (unable to provide for the
needs of the population). see Article 1.

 Government - the agency of instrumentality through which the will of the State is formulated, expressed and realized.

 Functions:

 Constituent - Constituent functions constitute the very bonds of society and are therefore compulsory.

 Ministrant - Ministrant functions are those undertaken to advance the general interests of society, such as public
works, public charity, and regulation of trade and industry

 Doctrine of Parens Patriae:

 One of the important tasks of the government is to act for the State as parens patriae, or guardian of the rights of
people.

 De jure vs. De Facto Government:

 De Jure.—A de jure government has rightful title but no power or control, either because this has been withdrawn
from it or because it has not yet actually entered into the exercise thereof.

 De Facto.—A de facto government is a government of fact, that is, it actually exercises power or control but
without legal title.

Three kinds of De Facto government:

 The government that gets possession and control of by force or by voice of the majority, the rightful
legal government and maintains itself against the will of the latter

 That established as an independent government by the inhabitants of a country who rise in insurrection
against the parent state

 That which is established and maintained by military forces who invade and occupy a territory of the
enemy in the course of war, and which is denominated as a government of paramount force

 Government of the Philippines:

 Administrative Code of 1987, Sec. 2(1):

“The corporate governmental entity through the functions of the government are exercised throughout the
Philippines, including, save as the contrary appears from the context, various arms through which political authority is made
effective in the Philippines, whether pertaining to autonomous regions, provincial, city, municipal, or barangay subdivisions
or other form of local government.”

A government-owned or controlled corporation (GOCC) engaged in proprietary functions cannot be considered

part of the Government for purposes of exemption from the application of the statute of limitations.

 Administrative vs. Government

 Administration is the group of persons in whose hands the reins of government are for the time being.

 The administration runs the government.

 Administration is transitional whereas the government is permanent.

 Sovereignty - a capacity to enter into relations with other states; a supreme and uncontrollable power inherent from a State by which the State
is governed.

 Two Kinds of Sovereignty:

 Legal sovereignty.—The authority which has the power to issue final commands.

 Political sovereignty.—The power behind the legal sovereign, or the sum of the influences that operate upon it.

 Characteristics of sovereignty:

 Permanent

 Exclusive

 Comprehensive

 Absolute

 Indivisible

 Inalienable

 Imprescriptible

The Doctrine of State Immunity:

“The State may not be sued without its consent” (Art. XVI, Sec. 3, 1987 Constitution).

Basis of Non-suability of State

 The non-suability of the state is based on the logical and practical ground that there can be no legal right against the authority which
makes the law on which the right depends (Justice Holmes).

 The demands and inconveniences of litigation will divert the time and resources of the State from the more pressing matters demanding
its attention to the prejudice of the public welfare.

Application

The test is whether, assuming the decision is rendered against the public officer impleaded, enforcement thereof will require an affirmative action
from the State, such as the appropriation of the needed amount to satisfy the judgment.

Waiver of Immunity

The State may be sued if it gives its consent.

Forms of Consent

1. Expressed consent.—Expressed consent may be manifested either through a general law or special law.

2. Implied consent.—Implied consent is given when the State itself commences litigation or when it enters into a contract.

 When the government enters into a contract for the State, it is then deemed to have divested itself of the mantle of immunity and
descended to the level of the ordinary individual.

 Immunity would be lost regardless of the nature of the contract (Santos vs. Santos, Lyons vs. USA).

 Suability would follow only if the contract is entered into by the government in its proprietary capacity (USA vs. Ruiz).

 Governmental contracts do not result in implied waiver of the immunity of the State from suit.

Suit Against Government Agencies

If suit is against one of the government’s entities, it must be ascertained if the principal has given its consent to be sued.

It will depend in the first instance on whether the government agency impleaded is incorporated or unincorporated.

1. Incorporated agency.— It has a charter of its own that invests it with a separate juridical personality.

2. Unincorporated agency.—It has no separate juridical personality but is merged in the general machinery of the government.

 If the agency is incorporated, the test of its suability is found in its charter.

 The test in every case is the nature of the primary functions being discharged.

Suability vs. Liability

 The mere fact that the State is suable does not mean that it is liable; or, waiver of immunity by the State does not mean concession of its
liability.

 Suability is the result of the express or implied consent of the State to be sued.

 Liability is determined after hearing on the basis of the relevant laws and the established facts.

Preamble Preamble We, the sovereign Filipino people, imploring the aid of Almighty God, in order to build a just a 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 blessing 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.

 Preamble is not considered a source of substantive right since its purpose is only to introduce.

 Literally means “to walk before.” (Praeambulus: Walking in front)

 It’s not merely rhetorical; it indicates the authors of the Constitution.

 It also enumerates the primary aims and expresses the aspirations of the framers in drafting the Constitution.
  It is a useful aid in construction and interpretation of the text of the Constitution.

National Territory Article 1. The national territory compromises 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 domain, including its territorial sea, the seabed, the
subsoil, the insular shelves, and other submarine areas. The water around, between, and connecting the
islands of the archipelago, regardless of their breadth and dimensions, form part of the internal waters
of the Philippines.

The Archipelagic Doctrine:

The waters around, between, and connecting the islands of of the archipelago, regardless of their breadth and dimensions,
form part of the internal waters of the Philippines.

Components of territory

 Terrestrial domain - the land mass

 Fluvial domain - the inland and external waters

 Aerial domain - the air space above the land and waters

Article 1 here is the substantial reproduction of Article 1 of the 1973 Constitution with only a few minor changes.

Comparison with the previous Constitution:

1935 - describes national territory by reference to the pertinent treaties concluded by the United States during its regime in
this country, emphasizing the colonial past.

1973 - has reference to the territorial claim by historic right or legal title

1987 - physically lists the components of our territory; de-emphasizes recollections of our colonial past; and deleted
reference to the territories we claim by historic right or legal title. But this does not mean an outright or formal abandonment
of such claim, which was best left to a judicial body capable of passing judgment over the issue.

Article 2. Declaration of Principles and State Policies

Principles (Sections 1-6)

“democratic & Section 1. The Philippine is a democratic and republican state. Sovereignty resides in the people and all
republican” government authority emanates from them.

“WAR” Section 2. The Philippine renounces war as an instrument of national policy, adopts the generally
accepted principles of international law as part of the law of the land, and adheres to the
policy of truth, justice, freedom, cooperation and amity with all nation.
 Section 3. Civilian authority is, at all time, supreme over the military. The Armed Forces of the
Philippines is the protector of the people and the State. Its goal is to secure the sovereignty
“Supremacy of of the State and the integrity of the national territory.
Authority”

Section 4. The prime duty of the government is to serve and protect the people. The government may
call upon the people to defend the State, and in the fulfillment thereof, all civilian may be
required, under the conditions provided by law, to render personal, military or civil
“Duty of the service.
Government”

Section 5. The maintenance of peace and order, the protection of life, liberty and property, and
promotion of the general welfare are essential for the enjoyment by all the people of the
blessing of democracy.
“Enjoyment”
Section 6. The separation of Church and State shall be inviolable.

“Church & State”

State Policies (Sections 7-28)

Section 7. The Philippine is a democratic and republican state. Sovereignty resides in the people and all
government authority emanates from them.

Section 8. The Philippine renounces war as an instrument of national policy, adopts the generally
accepted principles of international law as part of the law of the land, and adheres to the
policy of truth, justice, freedom, cooperation and amity with all nation.

Section 9. Civilian authority is, at all time, supreme over the military. The Armed Forces of the
Philippines is the protector of the people and the State. Its goal is to secure the sovereignty
of the State and the integrity of the national territory.

Section 10. The prime duty of the government is to serve and protect the people. The government may
call upon the people to defend the State, and in the fulfillment thereof, all civilian may be
required, under the conditions provided by law, to render personal, military or civil
service.

Section 11. The maintenance of peace and order, the protection of life, liberty and property, and
promotion of the general welfare are essential for the enjoyment by all the people of the
blessing of democracy.

Section 12. The separation of Church and State shall be inviolable.

Article II lays down the rules underlying our system of government and must therefore be adhered to in the conduct of
public affairs and the resolution of public issues.

Republicanism

 A republic is a representative government, a government fun by and for the people.

 The essence of republicanism is representation and renovation, the selection by their citizenry of a corps of
public functionaries who derive their mandate from the people and act on their behalf, serving for a limited
period only, after which they are replaced or retained at the option of their principal.

The Incorporation Clause

  Art. II, Sec. 2: “The Philippines…adopts the generally accepted principles of international law as part of the law
of the land…”

 Every State is, by reasons of its membership in the family of nations, bound by generally accepted principles of
international law (doctrine of incorporation).

Supremacy of Civilian Authority

 Art. II, Sec. 3: “Civilian authority is, at all times, supreme over the military. The Armed Forces of the Philippines
is the protector of the people and the State. Its goal is to secure the sovereign of the State and the integrity of the
national territory.”

The Defense of the State

 Art. II, Sec. 4, 1987 Constitution: “…all citizens may be required, under conditions provided by law, to render
personal military or civil service.”

 The duty is imposed upon all citizens.

 The duty must be personal, to preclude the hiring by the rich of “mercenaries” or professional soldiers to take
their place in the defense of the State.

Separation of Church and State

 Art. II, Sec. 6 reiterates “the separation of Church and State shall be inviolable.”

 The doctrine cuts both ways:

o State is prohibited from interfering in purely ecclesiastical affairs;

o The Church is barred from meddling in purely secular matters.

 No excessive entanglement.

Rearing of the Youth

 Art. II, Sec. 12 and Sec. 13 deal with the proper rearing of the youth.

 This power is exercised most effectively, at least during the child’s formative years, through the school.

Women

 Art. II, Sec. 14 deals with the role of women in nation-building.

Social Justice

 Justice Jose P. Laurel, in Callang vs. Williams, defined Social Justice thus:

“Social justice is ‘neither communism, nor despotism, nor atomism, nor anarchy,’ but the humanization of laws
and the equalization of social and economic forces by the State so that justice in its rational and objectively secular
conception may at least be approximated.”

 Salus populi est suprema lex.—The welfare of the people is the supreme law.

Local Autonomy

 The strengthening of the local government is based on the Jeffersonian view that “municipal corporations are the
small republics from which the great one derives its strength.”