PH Federalism Debate: Where Are We Now?
The Constitution, regarded as the fundamental law of the land, is the foundation of our institutions. Constitutions seek to build, enable and regulate institutions that cater the needs and rights of people (“What is a Constitution?”) They also have a key role in empowering states, providing government stability and legitimizing regimes (Heywood 338).
Any attempt at an amendment or revision of our constitution entails a complex process of discourse and decision-making. Amendments mean changing specific provisions in our Constitution without affecting its other parts. But, a revision implies a fundamental review to change the essence or totality of our Constitution (“How To Change A Constitution.”). With the ongoing debate on the viability of a shift to a federal form of government in the Philippines, not only politicians and scholars but the citizenry should pay a close attention because everyone will be affected by
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Among them include the UPSE-Ayala Forum, CPBRD Lecture Series and the PIDS Annual Public Policy Conference (Agabin et al.; Corpuz et al.). These lectures evaluated, discussed and analyzed the prospects of federalism in the country using different perspectives and fields of inquiry where reception for federalism ranged from full support to constructive criticisms. In general, advocates of federalism argue that under a federal system, the Philippines will have a more inclusive economic development by allowing the regions to have better fiscal autonomy. Moreover, they see it as way to ensure more avenues for representation through regional governments that know better of policies that suit local conditions while bringing the government closer to the people accommodating our country’s archipelagic nature and ethno-linguistic diversity. They also see it as the key solution to the Mindanao peace problem (Fabella; Pimentel; Ranada and
The Constitution is a set of basic principles and laws that states the power and duties of the government, and is still used today. The Constitution limited the power of the national government and protected the rights of the people
1. A constitution is a charter that both establishes a government and delineates fundamental rights and obligations of that government and of individuals who fall within the territory covered by the constitution. The Constitution of the U.S. provided for a federal union of the states and a federal government divided into three branches (legislative, judicial, and executive) to operate the union. The fundamental rights of the Constitution are known as the Ten Amendments, which make up the Bill of Rights. The Constitution gives the government limited power and describes what they can and cannot do, how to govern the legal system, and give rights to citizens.
A Constitution serves to establish a government, and act as a guide and a reference. It encapsulates the ideals of a citizenry, and delegates powers to a central government. Federal and state governments utilize distinct Constitutions tailored to the specific needs and challenges of governing at the national and local levels.
relevance of federalism both from an increasingly globalised national perspective and within a nation of small population and relative cultural homogeny; and
The Constitution itself not only established a strong national government, but also established fundamental laws, along with the basic rights of citizens.
According to the teaching of this course, some constitutions features and functions are Theories of government, humanity, society and God. When it comes down to it , constitutions are designed to prevent the government from doing unethical things to others like illegal search and seizure and unwarranted surveillance activities.
A constitution is the system of fundamental principles according to which a nation is governed. Our founding fathers created the US Constitution to
When people gather together for form a society, they will automatically need a fundamental law (constitution) that will be above everything and everyone. Constitution is what actually regulates a country. It provides rights and set up obligations for everyone. The United States constitution is one of the greatest documents ever written. It provides liberty, prosperity, equality, more importantly huge freedom. However, the ratification of the U.S. constitution was not an easy task. The farmers had trouble to agree on several issues such as the representation and distribution of political powers; how to prevent excessive democracy; and the protection of individual liberties, etc.
As the primary law of the land, the Constitution establishes all succeeding laws that would cater to the development and progress of a nation. The United States, with almost half a millennia of political practice has created for itself a system spanning the entire modern free world.
Now that the topic of federalism has been covered in the shortest possible manner, I would like to shift focus to the final topic of this paper – political
Federalism is a system of government in where the power of the country is divided amongst the national and state governments. Each of these governments has both its advantages and disadvantages that I will be discussing in this forum. I will as well state my opinion on what I believe the American federal system gives the citizens of the nation.
Constitutions are a necessary tool because they are the basic law of a state or nation that
Another is that Filipinos have a culture of apathy and tend to use religion incorrectly and passively. People depend on religion and settle for what’s okay. In addition, the initial reaction of Filipinos to change is resistance, and this is why the country does not necessarily progress, or at least, progress at a continuous rate. Then, countries like Spain and Portugal only rode the “economic tiger” after “they realized that the only way to survive was change” (3.Y). Plus, according to another critic, the Philippines already had the experience of being under the parliamentary system during the time of Marcos which only resulted in a People Power Revolution. So why should the country bother going back to that? (4.Y)
Federalism plays an integral part in the growth and development of the United States of America and is a key factor in determining the basis of power in this country. Clearly, the term federalism can be understood in many different ways pertaining to each person's view, but it can be more broadly defined in terms of the separation between the state and federal government. Thomas E. Patterson defines federalism as, “the division of sovereignty, or ultimate governing authority, between a national government and regional (that is, state) governments. Each directly governs the people and derives its authority from them” (Patterson 74). He then goes on to give a more basic definition with, “American Federalism is basically a system of
Looking back to the previous government systems in different periods in Philippine history, we can see that our present government system is somehow shaped and patterned from the previous systems that prevailed in our country. Pre – historically we have seen how they established their government and basically, we can say that it is far more primitive than the present system that we have. However, the basic principles like the consultation of the datus to the elders can somehow be seen in the present by the presence of political advisers where our president consults aside from the members of the senate and the congress. The barangay system