Political Science
Content
POLSCI
Article 6 (legislative branch)
Art. 6 section 6-15
Section 6. No person shall be a Member of the House of Representatives unless he is a naturalborn citizen of the Philippines and, on the day of the election, is at least twenty-five years of age,
able to read and write, and, except the party-list representatives, a registered voter in the district
in which he shall be elected, and a resident thereof for a period of not less than one year
immediately preceding the day of the election.
CASE:
Read:
1.
ANTONIO BENGSON III VS. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ELECTORAL TRIBUNAL and
TEODORO CRUZ, 357 SCRA 545
Rep. Act No. 2630
“Sec. 1. Any person who had lost his Philippine Citizenship by rendering service to, or accepting
commission in, the Armed Forces of the United States, or after separation from the Armed Forces
of the United states, acquired US citizenship, MAY REACQUIRE PHILIPPINE CITIZENSHIP BY
TAKING AN OATH OF ALLEGIANCE TO THE REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES AND REGISTERING
THE SAME WITH THE LOCAL CIVIL REGISTRY IN THE PLACE WHERE HE RESIDES OR LAST
RESIDED IN THE PHILIPPINES. The said Oath of allegiance shall contain a renunciation of any
other citizenship.”
2.
Section 2, Article IV, 1987 Philippine Constitution
“Section 2. Natural born citizens are those citizens of the Philippines from birth without having to
perform an act to acquire or perfect their Philippine citizenship. Those who elect Philippine
Citizenship in accordance with par. 3* , Section 1 shall be deemed natural born citizens.”
OCAMPO VS. HOUSE ELECTORAL TRIBUNAL and MARIO CRESPO, a.k.a. MARK JIMENEZ, June
15, 2004
Who takes the place of the winning candidate as a Member of the House of Representatives who
was disqualified after he was proclaimed as such?
Facts:
The petitioner and Mark Jimenez were candidates for Congressman of the 6th District of manila
for the May 14, 2001 elections. Mark Jimenez won over the petitioner with 32,097 votes as against
petitioner’s 31,329 votes.
3.
Petitioner filed an electoral protest before the HRET based on the following grounds: 1]
misreading of ballots; 2] falsification of election returns; 3]substitution of election returns; 4] use
of marked, spurious fake and stray ballots; and 5] presence of ballots written by one or two
persons.
4.
On March 6, 2003, the HRET issued its Decision in the case of ABANTE, ET AL. VS. MARI
CRESPO, a.k.a. MARK JIMENEZ, et al., declaring Mark Jimenez “ ineligible for the Office of
Representative of Sixth District of Manila for lack of residence in the District. Mark Jimenez filed a
Motion for Reconsideration which was denied.
As a result of said disqualification of Jimenez, the petitioner claimed that all the votes cast for the
former should not be counted and since he garnered the second highest number of votes, he
should be declared winner in the May 14, 2001 elections and be proclaimed the duly elected
Congressman of the 6th District of manila.
Issues:
Are the votes of Mark Jimenez stray votes and should not be counted?
Whether the petitioner as second places should be proclaimed winner since the winner was
disqualified?
Held:
1.
There must be a final judgment disqualifying a candidate in order that the votes of a
disqualified candidate can be considered “stray”. This final judgment must be rendered BEFORE
THE ELECTION. This was the ruling in the case of CODILLA VS. DE VENECIA. Hence, when a
candidate has not been disqualified by final judgment during the election day he was voted for,
the votes cast in his favor cannot be declared stray. To do so would amount to disenfranchising
the electorate in whom sovereignty resides. The reason behind this is that the people voted for
him bona fide and in the honest belief that the candidate was then qualified to be the person to
whom they would entrust the exercise of the powers of government.
2.
The subsequent disqualification of a candidate who obtained the highest number of votes
does not entitle the second placer to be declared the winner. The said principle was laid down as
early as 1912 and reiterated in the cases of LABO VS. COMELEC, ABELLA VS. COMELEC and
DOMINO VS. COMELEC.
Section 7. The Members of the House of Representatives shall be elected for a term of three years
which shall begin, unless otherwise provided by law, at noon on the thirtieth day of June next
following their election. No Member of the House of Representatives shall serve for more than
three consecutive terms. Voluntary renunciation of the office for any length of time shall not be
considered as an interruption in the continuity of his service for the full term for which he was
elected.
Section 8. Unless otherwise provided by law, the regular election of the Senators and the
Members of the House of Representatives shall be held on the second Monday of May.
Section 9. In case of vacancy in the Senate or in the House of Representatives, a special election
may be called to fill such vacancy in the manner prescribed by law, but the Senator or Member of
the House of Representatives thus elected shall serve only for the unexpired term.
Read: 1. LOZADA vs. COMELEC, 120 SCRA 337
COMELEC cannot call a special election (for the legislative districts whose Congressmen
resigned or died while in office) without a law passed by Congress appropriating funds for the
said purpose.
2. RA 6645-RE: Filling up of Congress Vacancy, December 28, 1987
Section 10. The salaries of Senators and Members of the House of Representatives shall be
determined by law. No increase in said compensation shall take effect until after the expiration of
the full term of all the Members of the Senate and the House of Representatives approving such
increase.
Section 11. A Senator or Member of the House of Representatives shall, in all offenses punishable
by not more than six years imprisonment, be privileged from arrest while the Congress is in
session. No Member shall be questioned nor be held liable in any other place for any speech or
debate in the Congress or in any committee thereof.
Section 12. All Members of the Senate and the House of Representatives shall, upon assumption
of office, make a full disclosure of their financial and business interests. They shall notify the
House concerned of a potential conflict of interest that may arise from the filing of a proposed
legislation of which they are authors.
Section 13. No Senator or Member of the House of Representatives may hold any other office or
employment in the Government, or any subdivision, agency, or instrumentality thereof, including
government-owned or controlled corporations or their subsidiaries, during his term without
forfeiting his seat. Neither shall he be appointed to any office which may have been created or the
emoluments thereof increased during the term for which he was elected.
Section 14. No Senator or Member of the House of Representatives may personally appear as
counsel before any court of justice or before the Electoral Tribunals, or quasi-judicial and other
administrative bodies. Neither shall he, directly or indirectly, be interested financially in any
contract with, or in any franchise or special privilege granted by the Government, or any
subdivision, agency, or instrumentality thereof, including any government-owned or controlled
corporation, or its subsidiary, during his term of office. He shall not intervene in any matter before
any office of the Government for his pecuniary benefit or where he may be called upon to act on
account of his office.
Section 15. The Congress shall convene once every year on the fourth Monday of July for its
regular session, unless a different date is fixed by law, and shall continue to be in session for
such number of days as it may determine until thirty days before the opening of its next regular
session, exclusive of Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays. The President may call a special
session at any time.
“The legislative power shall be vested in the Congress of the Philippines, which shall consist of the
Senate and the House of Representatives, except to the extent reserved to the people by the provision
on initiative and referendum.”
The Philippine Legislative branch, otherwise known as the Congress of the Philippines, is
composed of two houses:
the House of Senate
the House of Representatives.
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE TWO HOUSES:
SENATE
Terms are 6 years
..can filibuster
..can confirm all presidential appointments to
office and all treaties with foreign governments
…conducts the trial and remove from office
REPRESENTATIVES
Terms are 2 years
..cannot
..introduce taxation bills
..can impeach (bring charges against) office
holders
SIMILARITES
Similarities are both are set up with a committee system, both can introduce and pass new bills
(except taxation) both require majority votes of various majorities, both are elected by popular vote, both
have a majority and minority (party) leader, majority and minority whips, and both have caucus groups.
Powers of the House and Senate
Each house of Congress has the power to introduce legislation on any subject except revenue
bills, which must originate in the House of Representatives.
The broad powers of the whole Congress are spelled out in the eighth section of the first article of
the Constitution:
to levy and collect taxes;
to borrow money for the public treasury;
to make rules and regulations governing commerce among the states and with foreign countries;
to make uniform rules for the naturalization of foreign citizens;
to coin money, state its value, and provide for the punishment of counterfeiters;
to set the standards for weights and measures;
to establish bankruptcy laws for the country as a whole;
to establish post offices and post roads;
to issue patents and copyrights;
to set up a system of federal courts;
to punish piracy;
to declare war;
to raise and support armies;
to provide for a navy;
to call out the militia to enforce federal laws, suppress lawlessness or repel invasions by foreign
powers;
to make all laws for the District of Columbia; and
to make all laws necessary to enforce the Constitution.
A few of these powers are now outdated -- the District of Columbia today is largely self-governing -- but
they remain in effect. The 10th Amendment sets definite limits on congressional authority, by providing
that powers not delegated to the national government are reserved to the states or to the people. In
addition, the Constitution specifically forbids certain acts by Congress. It may not:
suspend the writ of habeas corpus, unless necessary in time of rebellion or invasion;
pass laws which condemn persons for crimes or unlawful acts without a trial;
pass any law which retroactively makes a specific act a crime;
levy direct taxes on citizens, except on the basis of a census already taken;
tax exports from any one state;
give specially favorable treatment in commerce or taxation to the seaports of any state or to the
vessels using them; and
authorize any titles of nobility.
Types of Legislation
The type of measures that Congress may consider and act upon (in addition to treaties in the
Senate) include bills and three kinds of resolutions. They are:
1. Bills
These are general measures, which if passed upon, may become laws. A bill is prefixed with S.,
followed by a number assigned the measure based on the order in which it is introduced. The vast
majority of legislative proposals––recommendations dealing with the economy, increasing penalties for
certain crimes, regulation on commerce and trade, etc., are drafted in the form of bills. They also include
budgetary appropriation of the government and many others. When passed by both chambers in identical
form and signed by the President or repassed by Congress over a presidential veto, they become laws.
2. Joint Resolutions
A joint resolution, like a bill, requires the approval of both houses and the signature of the President.
It has the force and effect of a law if approved. There is no real difference between a bill and a joint
resolution. The latter generally is used when dealing with a single item or issue, such as a continuing or
emergency appropriations bill. Joint resolutions are also used for proposing amendments to the
Constitution.
3. Concurrent Resolutions
A concurrent resolution is usually designated in the Senate as S. Ct. Res. It is used for matters
affecting the operations of both houses and must be passed in the same form by both of them. However,
they are not referred to the President for his signature, and they do not have the force of law. Concurrent
resolutions are used to fix the time of adjournment of a Congress and to express the “sense of Congress”
on an issue.
4. Simple Resolutions
It is usually designated with P. S. Res. A simple resolution deals with matters entirely within the
prerogative of one house of Congress, such as adopting or receiving its own rules. A simple resolution is
not considered by the other chamber and is not sent to the President for his signature. Like a concurrent
resolution, it has no effect and force of a law. Simple resolutions are used occasionally to express the
opinion of a single house on a current issue. Oftentimes, it is also used to call for a congressional action
on an issue affecting national interest.
UNICAMERAL LEGISLATION
Unicameral legislatures exist when there is no widely perceived need for multicameralism. Many
multicameral legislatures were created to give separate voices to different sectors of society. Multiple
chambers allowed for guaranteed representation of different social classes (as in the Parliament of the
United Kingdom or the French States-General), ethnic or regional interests, or subunits of a federation.
Where these factors are unimportant, in unitary states with weak regional identity, unicameralism often
prevails. Sometimes, as in New Zealand and Denmark, this comes about through the abolition of one the
two chambers, or, as in Sweden, through the merger of the two chambers into a single one, while in
others a second chamber has never existed.
ADVANTAGE OF UNICAMERAL
The principal advantage of a unicameral system is more efficient lawmaking, as the legislative process is
much simpler and there is no possibility of legislative deadlock. Proponents of unicameralism have also
argued that it reduces costs, as even if the number of legislators is the same as it would be in a
multicameral system, there are fewer institutions to maintain and support.
WEAKNESS OF UNICAMERAL
The main weakness of a unicameral system can be seen as the lack of restraint on the majority,
particularly noticeable in parliamentary systems where the leaders of the parliamentary majority also
dominate the executive. There is also the risk, depending on how seats are allocated in the legislature,
that important sectors of society may not be adequately represented. List of unicameral legislatures
Unicameralism was experienced in the Philippines from 1935-1940 during the Commonwealth
period. In the 1973 Constitution, the legislative system was called Batasang Pambansa in a parliamentary
system of the government until 1986.
The ongoing process of amending or revising the current constitution and form of government is
popularly known as Charter Change. A shift to a unicameral parliament is included in the proposals of the
constitutional commission created by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.[4] Unlike in the United States,
senators in the Senate of the Philippines are elected not per district and state but nationally; the
Philippines is a unitary state.[5] The Philippine government's decision-making process, relative to the
United States, is more rigid, highly centralized, much slower and susceptible to political "gridlocks." As a
result, the trend for unicameralism as well as other political system reforms are more contentious in the
Philippines.[6]
BICAMERAL LEGISLATION
..is one in which the legislators are divided into two separate assemblies, chambers or houses.
Theoretically, this dualism in the bicameral system is justified as an application of the principle of checks
and balances.
While Congress is bicameral, all local legislatures are unicameral: the ARMM Regional Legislative
Assembly, the Sangguniang Panlalawigan (Provincial Boards), Sangguniang Panlungsod (City Councils),
Sangguniang Bayan (Municipal Councils), Sangguniang Barangay (Barangay Councils) and the
Sangguniang Kabataan (Youth Council)
Article 6 (legislative branch)
Art. 6 section 6-15
Section 6. No person shall be a Member of the House of Representatives unless he is a naturalborn citizen of the Philippines and, on the day of the election, is at least twenty-five years of age,
able to read and write, and, except the party-list representatives, a registered voter in the district
in which he shall be elected, and a resident thereof for a period of not less than one year
immediately preceding the day of the election.
CASE:
Read:
1.
ANTONIO BENGSON III VS. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ELECTORAL TRIBUNAL and
TEODORO CRUZ, 357 SCRA 545
Rep. Act No. 2630
“Sec. 1. Any person who had lost his Philippine Citizenship by rendering service to, or accepting
commission in, the Armed Forces of the United States, or after separation from the Armed Forces
of the United states, acquired US citizenship, MAY REACQUIRE PHILIPPINE CITIZENSHIP BY
TAKING AN OATH OF ALLEGIANCE TO THE REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES AND REGISTERING
THE SAME WITH THE LOCAL CIVIL REGISTRY IN THE PLACE WHERE HE RESIDES OR LAST
RESIDED IN THE PHILIPPINES. The said Oath of allegiance shall contain a renunciation of any
other citizenship.”
2.
Section 2, Article IV, 1987 Philippine Constitution
“Section 2. Natural born citizens are those citizens of the Philippines from birth without having to
perform an act to acquire or perfect their Philippine citizenship. Those who elect Philippine
Citizenship in accordance with par. 3* , Section 1 shall be deemed natural born citizens.”
OCAMPO VS. HOUSE ELECTORAL TRIBUNAL and MARIO CRESPO, a.k.a. MARK JIMENEZ, June
15, 2004
Who takes the place of the winning candidate as a Member of the House of Representatives who
was disqualified after he was proclaimed as such?
Facts:
The petitioner and Mark Jimenez were candidates for Congressman of the 6th District of manila
for the May 14, 2001 elections. Mark Jimenez won over the petitioner with 32,097 votes as against
petitioner’s 31,329 votes.
3.
Petitioner filed an electoral protest before the HRET based on the following grounds: 1]
misreading of ballots; 2] falsification of election returns; 3]substitution of election returns; 4] use
of marked, spurious fake and stray ballots; and 5] presence of ballots written by one or two
persons.
4.
On March 6, 2003, the HRET issued its Decision in the case of ABANTE, ET AL. VS. MARI
CRESPO, a.k.a. MARK JIMENEZ, et al., declaring Mark Jimenez “ ineligible for the Office of
Representative of Sixth District of Manila for lack of residence in the District. Mark Jimenez filed a
Motion for Reconsideration which was denied.
As a result of said disqualification of Jimenez, the petitioner claimed that all the votes cast for the
former should not be counted and since he garnered the second highest number of votes, he
should be declared winner in the May 14, 2001 elections and be proclaimed the duly elected
Congressman of the 6th District of manila.
Issues:
Are the votes of Mark Jimenez stray votes and should not be counted?
Whether the petitioner as second places should be proclaimed winner since the winner was
disqualified?
Held:
1.
There must be a final judgment disqualifying a candidate in order that the votes of a
disqualified candidate can be considered “stray”. This final judgment must be rendered BEFORE
THE ELECTION. This was the ruling in the case of CODILLA VS. DE VENECIA. Hence, when a
candidate has not been disqualified by final judgment during the election day he was voted for,
the votes cast in his favor cannot be declared stray. To do so would amount to disenfranchising
the electorate in whom sovereignty resides. The reason behind this is that the people voted for
him bona fide and in the honest belief that the candidate was then qualified to be the person to
whom they would entrust the exercise of the powers of government.
2.
The subsequent disqualification of a candidate who obtained the highest number of votes
does not entitle the second placer to be declared the winner. The said principle was laid down as
early as 1912 and reiterated in the cases of LABO VS. COMELEC, ABELLA VS. COMELEC and
DOMINO VS. COMELEC.
Section 7. The Members of the House of Representatives shall be elected for a term of three years
which shall begin, unless otherwise provided by law, at noon on the thirtieth day of June next
following their election. No Member of the House of Representatives shall serve for more than
three consecutive terms. Voluntary renunciation of the office for any length of time shall not be
considered as an interruption in the continuity of his service for the full term for which he was
elected.
Section 8. Unless otherwise provided by law, the regular election of the Senators and the
Members of the House of Representatives shall be held on the second Monday of May.
Section 9. In case of vacancy in the Senate or in the House of Representatives, a special election
may be called to fill such vacancy in the manner prescribed by law, but the Senator or Member of
the House of Representatives thus elected shall serve only for the unexpired term.
Read: 1. LOZADA vs. COMELEC, 120 SCRA 337
COMELEC cannot call a special election (for the legislative districts whose Congressmen
resigned or died while in office) without a law passed by Congress appropriating funds for the
said purpose.
2. RA 6645-RE: Filling up of Congress Vacancy, December 28, 1987
Section 10. The salaries of Senators and Members of the House of Representatives shall be
determined by law. No increase in said compensation shall take effect until after the expiration of
the full term of all the Members of the Senate and the House of Representatives approving such
increase.
Section 11. A Senator or Member of the House of Representatives shall, in all offenses punishable
by not more than six years imprisonment, be privileged from arrest while the Congress is in
session. No Member shall be questioned nor be held liable in any other place for any speech or
debate in the Congress or in any committee thereof.
Section 12. All Members of the Senate and the House of Representatives shall, upon assumption
of office, make a full disclosure of their financial and business interests. They shall notify the
House concerned of a potential conflict of interest that may arise from the filing of a proposed
legislation of which they are authors.
Section 13. No Senator or Member of the House of Representatives may hold any other office or
employment in the Government, or any subdivision, agency, or instrumentality thereof, including
government-owned or controlled corporations or their subsidiaries, during his term without
forfeiting his seat. Neither shall he be appointed to any office which may have been created or the
emoluments thereof increased during the term for which he was elected.
Section 14. No Senator or Member of the House of Representatives may personally appear as
counsel before any court of justice or before the Electoral Tribunals, or quasi-judicial and other
administrative bodies. Neither shall he, directly or indirectly, be interested financially in any
contract with, or in any franchise or special privilege granted by the Government, or any
subdivision, agency, or instrumentality thereof, including any government-owned or controlled
corporation, or its subsidiary, during his term of office. He shall not intervene in any matter before
any office of the Government for his pecuniary benefit or where he may be called upon to act on
account of his office.
Section 15. The Congress shall convene once every year on the fourth Monday of July for its
regular session, unless a different date is fixed by law, and shall continue to be in session for
such number of days as it may determine until thirty days before the opening of its next regular
session, exclusive of Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays. The President may call a special
session at any time.
“The legislative power shall be vested in the Congress of the Philippines, which shall consist of the
Senate and the House of Representatives, except to the extent reserved to the people by the provision
on initiative and referendum.”
The Philippine Legislative branch, otherwise known as the Congress of the Philippines, is
composed of two houses:
the House of Senate
the House of Representatives.
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE TWO HOUSES:
SENATE
Terms are 6 years
..can filibuster
..can confirm all presidential appointments to
office and all treaties with foreign governments
…conducts the trial and remove from office
REPRESENTATIVES
Terms are 2 years
..cannot
..introduce taxation bills
..can impeach (bring charges against) office
holders
SIMILARITES
Similarities are both are set up with a committee system, both can introduce and pass new bills
(except taxation) both require majority votes of various majorities, both are elected by popular vote, both
have a majority and minority (party) leader, majority and minority whips, and both have caucus groups.
Powers of the House and Senate
Each house of Congress has the power to introduce legislation on any subject except revenue
bills, which must originate in the House of Representatives.
The broad powers of the whole Congress are spelled out in the eighth section of the first article of
the Constitution:
to levy and collect taxes;
to borrow money for the public treasury;
to make rules and regulations governing commerce among the states and with foreign countries;
to make uniform rules for the naturalization of foreign citizens;
to coin money, state its value, and provide for the punishment of counterfeiters;
to set the standards for weights and measures;
to establish bankruptcy laws for the country as a whole;
to establish post offices and post roads;
to issue patents and copyrights;
to set up a system of federal courts;
to punish piracy;
to declare war;
to raise and support armies;
to provide for a navy;
to call out the militia to enforce federal laws, suppress lawlessness or repel invasions by foreign
powers;
to make all laws for the District of Columbia; and
to make all laws necessary to enforce the Constitution.
A few of these powers are now outdated -- the District of Columbia today is largely self-governing -- but
they remain in effect. The 10th Amendment sets definite limits on congressional authority, by providing
that powers not delegated to the national government are reserved to the states or to the people. In
addition, the Constitution specifically forbids certain acts by Congress. It may not:
suspend the writ of habeas corpus, unless necessary in time of rebellion or invasion;
pass laws which condemn persons for crimes or unlawful acts without a trial;
pass any law which retroactively makes a specific act a crime;
levy direct taxes on citizens, except on the basis of a census already taken;
tax exports from any one state;
give specially favorable treatment in commerce or taxation to the seaports of any state or to the
vessels using them; and
authorize any titles of nobility.
Types of Legislation
The type of measures that Congress may consider and act upon (in addition to treaties in the
Senate) include bills and three kinds of resolutions. They are:
1. Bills
These are general measures, which if passed upon, may become laws. A bill is prefixed with S.,
followed by a number assigned the measure based on the order in which it is introduced. The vast
majority of legislative proposals––recommendations dealing with the economy, increasing penalties for
certain crimes, regulation on commerce and trade, etc., are drafted in the form of bills. They also include
budgetary appropriation of the government and many others. When passed by both chambers in identical
form and signed by the President or repassed by Congress over a presidential veto, they become laws.
2. Joint Resolutions
A joint resolution, like a bill, requires the approval of both houses and the signature of the President.
It has the force and effect of a law if approved. There is no real difference between a bill and a joint
resolution. The latter generally is used when dealing with a single item or issue, such as a continuing or
emergency appropriations bill. Joint resolutions are also used for proposing amendments to the
Constitution.
3. Concurrent Resolutions
A concurrent resolution is usually designated in the Senate as S. Ct. Res. It is used for matters
affecting the operations of both houses and must be passed in the same form by both of them. However,
they are not referred to the President for his signature, and they do not have the force of law. Concurrent
resolutions are used to fix the time of adjournment of a Congress and to express the “sense of Congress”
on an issue.
4. Simple Resolutions
It is usually designated with P. S. Res. A simple resolution deals with matters entirely within the
prerogative of one house of Congress, such as adopting or receiving its own rules. A simple resolution is
not considered by the other chamber and is not sent to the President for his signature. Like a concurrent
resolution, it has no effect and force of a law. Simple resolutions are used occasionally to express the
opinion of a single house on a current issue. Oftentimes, it is also used to call for a congressional action
on an issue affecting national interest.
UNICAMERAL LEGISLATION
Unicameral legislatures exist when there is no widely perceived need for multicameralism. Many
multicameral legislatures were created to give separate voices to different sectors of society. Multiple
chambers allowed for guaranteed representation of different social classes (as in the Parliament of the
United Kingdom or the French States-General), ethnic or regional interests, or subunits of a federation.
Where these factors are unimportant, in unitary states with weak regional identity, unicameralism often
prevails. Sometimes, as in New Zealand and Denmark, this comes about through the abolition of one the
two chambers, or, as in Sweden, through the merger of the two chambers into a single one, while in
others a second chamber has never existed.
ADVANTAGE OF UNICAMERAL
The principal advantage of a unicameral system is more efficient lawmaking, as the legislative process is
much simpler and there is no possibility of legislative deadlock. Proponents of unicameralism have also
argued that it reduces costs, as even if the number of legislators is the same as it would be in a
multicameral system, there are fewer institutions to maintain and support.
WEAKNESS OF UNICAMERAL
The main weakness of a unicameral system can be seen as the lack of restraint on the majority,
particularly noticeable in parliamentary systems where the leaders of the parliamentary majority also
dominate the executive. There is also the risk, depending on how seats are allocated in the legislature,
that important sectors of society may not be adequately represented. List of unicameral legislatures
Unicameralism was experienced in the Philippines from 1935-1940 during the Commonwealth
period. In the 1973 Constitution, the legislative system was called Batasang Pambansa in a parliamentary
system of the government until 1986.
The ongoing process of amending or revising the current constitution and form of government is
popularly known as Charter Change. A shift to a unicameral parliament is included in the proposals of the
constitutional commission created by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.[4] Unlike in the United States,
senators in the Senate of the Philippines are elected not per district and state but nationally; the
Philippines is a unitary state.[5] The Philippine government's decision-making process, relative to the
United States, is more rigid, highly centralized, much slower and susceptible to political "gridlocks." As a
result, the trend for unicameralism as well as other political system reforms are more contentious in the
Philippines.[6]
BICAMERAL LEGISLATION
..is one in which the legislators are divided into two separate assemblies, chambers or houses.
Theoretically, this dualism in the bicameral system is justified as an application of the principle of checks
and balances.
While Congress is bicameral, all local legislatures are unicameral: the ARMM Regional Legislative
Assembly, the Sangguniang Panlalawigan (Provincial Boards), Sangguniang Panlungsod (City Councils),
Sangguniang Bayan (Municipal Councils), Sangguniang Barangay (Barangay Councils) and the
Sangguniang Kabataan (Youth Council)
