3 BRANCHES

of the
GOVERNMENT

LEGISLATIVE EXECUTIVE JUDICIARY

Principle of SEPARATION OF POWERS

- each government branch is not permitted to

encroach upon the powers confided to others.
Arbitrary rule would result if the same body is to
exercise all the powers of the government.
Principle of CHECKS AND BALANCES
- authorizing a considerable amount of
encroachment or checking by one branch in the
affairs of the others. Each branch is given certain
powers with which to check the others.

 Pres.may disapprove bills enacted by Congress

 Congress may reject appointments by the Pres.
 Judiciary may declare unconstitutional laws
enacted by the Congress
ARTICLE VI

Legislative
Department
SECTION 1.

The legislative power shall be vested in

the Congress of the Philippines which
shall consist of a Senate and a House of
Representatives ….
Legislative Power

- power to make laws, and subsequently, to

alter and repeal them
SECTION 2.

The Senate shall be composed of twenty-

four Senators…
SECTION 3.
No person shall be a Senator unless he is
a natural-born citizen of the Philippines,
and, on the day of the election, is at least
thirty-five years of age, able to read and
write, a registered voter, and a resident
of the Philippines for not less than two
years immediately preceding the day of
the election.
SECTION 4.

The term of office of the Senators shall be

six years …

No Senator shall serve for more than two

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 5.
(1) The House of Representatives shall be
composed of not more than two hundred and
fifty members… who shall be elected from
legislative districts …
(2) The party-list representatives shall
constitute twenty per centum of the total
number of representatives …labor, peasant,
urban poor, indigenous cultural
communities, women, youth, and such other
sectors as may be provided by law..
2 kinds of members of House of Representatives
1.) District Representative – elected directly and
personally from the territorial unit he is seeking
to represent.

2.) Party-list Representative – chosen indirectly,

through the party he represents, which is the one
voted for by the electorate. This is to give an
opportunity to weak sectors to have their voices
heard.
SECTION 6.
No person shall be a Member of the House
of Representatives unless he is a natural-
born 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.
SECTION 7.
The Members of the House of
Representatives shall be elected for a term
of three years …

No member of the House of Representatives

shall serve for more than three consecutive
terms…
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.
FREEDOM from ARREST
 offenses punishable by not more than six

years imprisonment
 while Congress is in session

FREEDOM of SPEECH and DEBATE

 remarks must be made in connection with the

discharge of official duties.

 while Congress is in session
Reason for the congressional privileges…
To enable members of Congress to discharge
their functions adequately and without fear. It is
true that the privileges may be abused.
However, the harm which would come from its
abuse is considered slight compared to that
which might arise if the privileges were not
given.
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…
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.
INCOMPATIBLE OFFICE
Office which mat not be held by a member of
a Congress outside the legislative department.
There is a need for members to devote their time
and attention to the discharge of their legislative
responsibilities.

FORBIDDEN OFFICE
Office which a member of a Congress may not
be a beneficiary by reason of being a participant
when said office was created. Hence, a member of
Congress shall not be eligible for appointment to
such office even if he resigns.
SECTION 15.
The Congress shall convene once every year
on the fourth Monday of July for its
regular session, …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.
SECTION 16.

(1) The Senate shall elect its President and

the House of Representatives its Speaker,
by a majority vote of all its respective
Members.

(2) A majority of each House shall

constitute a quorum to do business…
(3) Each House may determine the rules of its
proceedings, punish its Members for
disorderly behavior, and, with the
concurrence of two-thirds of all its Members,
suspend or expel a Member. A penalty of
suspension, when imposed, shall not exceed
sixty days.
(4) Each House shall keep a Journal of its
proceedings, and from time to time publish
the same, excepting such parts as may, in its
judgment, affect national security…
QUORUM
- a number of membership which is competent to
transact its business; is at least one-half plus one
of the members of a body.

LEGISATIVE JOURNAL
- the official record of what is done and passed in a
legislative assembly and the proceedings occurred
from day to day.
SECTION 17.

The Senate and the House of

Representatives shall each have an
Electoral Tribunal which shall be the sole
judge of all contests relating to the
election, returns, and qualifications of
their respective Members…
SECTION 18.

There shall be a Commission on

Appointments… shall act on all
appointments submitted to it…
SECTION 21.
The Senate or the House of
Representatives or any of its respective
committees may conduct inquiries in aid
of legislation in accordance with its duly
published rules of procedure. The rights
of persons appearing in or affected by
such inquiries shall be respected.
SECTION 26.
No bill passed by either House shall become
a law unless it has passed three readings on
separate days, and printed copies thereof in
its final form have been distributed to its
Members three days before its passage…
Upon the last reading of a bill, no
amendment thereto shall be allowed, and the
vote thereon shall be taken immediately
thereafter, and the yeas and nays entered in
the Journal.
 Steps in the Passage of a Bill
First Reading
- reading of the number, title of the measure
and name of the author
Second Reading
- the bill is read in its entirety, scrutinized ,
debated upon and amended when desired
Third Reading
- members merely register their votes and
explain them. No further debate is allowed.
SECTION 27.
Every bill passed by the Congress shall, before it
becomes a law, be presented to the President. If he
approves the same, he shall sign it; otherwise, he shall
veto it and return the same with his objections to the
House where it originated, which shall enter the
objections at large in its Journal and proceed to
reconsider it. If, after such reconsideration, two-thirds
of all the Members of such House shall agree to pass
the bill, it shall be sent…to the other House by which it
shall likewise be reconsidered, and if approved by
two-thirds of all the Members of that House, it shall
become a law… The President shall communicate his
veto of any bill to the House where it originated within
thirty days after the date of receipt thereof; otherwise,
it shall become a law as if he had signed it.
3 ways when a bill may become a law
1.) When the President approves the bill by
signing it.
2.) When the President vetoes the bill and the
same is overriden by 2/3 votes of all the
members of both Houses.
3.) When the President does not
communicate his veto within 30 days after
the date of receipt.