POLITICAL LAW REVIEWER

Constitution - that body of rules and maxims in accordance with which the powers of sovereign
ty are habitually exercised.
- it is a written enactment by the direct action of the people by which the fundam
ental powes of the government are established, define, and limited and by which those powers
are distributed among several departments for their safe and useful exercise fo the benefit of t
he body politic.

DOCTRINE OF CONSTITUTIONAL SUPREMACY

- under said doctrine, if a law or contract violates any norm of the Constitution, the law or cont
ract whether promulgated by the legislative or by the executive branch of the government or e
ntered into by private persons for private purposes is null and void and without any force and e
ffect.

Classification of the Constitution:

1. Written - reduced in writing
2. Enacted - product of deliberate assembly
3. Rigid - cannot be altered or amended

Consititution vs. Statute

- a statute must provide for details of the subject which it treats, whereas, a consitution usually
stated general principles, and builds the substantial foundation and general framework of the l
aw and government,

Attributes of a Good Written Constitution:

1. Brief - should not be too detailed
2. Broad - should be comprehensive enough
3. Definite - thee should be no room for vagueness and ambiguity.

Purpose of a Constitution:
1. It prescirbes the pemanent framework of the system of government.
2. It assigns to the different departments their respective powers and duties.
3. It establishes the asic principles upon which the government is founded.

Major Parts of the Constitution

1. Constitution of Government - outlines the organization of the government.
2. Constitution of Liberty - sets forth the fundamental civil and political rights of the people.
3. Constitution of Sovereignty - points out the authority of the people to amend or revies the f
undamental law.

CONSTITUTIONAL CONSTRUCTION
1. VERBA LEGIS (Plain meaning rule) - whenevr possible the words used in Constitution must be
given their ordinary meaning except where technical terms are employed.
Verba legis non est recedendum - from the words of a statue, there should be no departure.
Index animi sermo est - speech is the index of intention

2. UT MAGIS VALEAT QUAM PEREAT - the Constitution must be interpreted as a whole. It mus
t be construed in its entirety as one, single document.

3. RATIO LEGIS EST ANIMA LEGIS - the reason of the law is the soul of the law. Intent of the fra
mers to be given effect. Should it be ambiguous, the Cout may consider the intent of the frame
rs through their debates in the Constitutional Convention.

4. CONSTITUTIONAL PROVISIONS ARE GENERALLY SELF-EXECUTING; EXCEPTIONS - a provisi

on which is complete in itself and become operative without the aid of supplementary or enabl
ing legislation, or that which supplies sufficient rule by means of which the right it grans may b
e enjoyed or protected, is self-executing. However, a provision which lays down a general princ
iple or policy and by its language it epowes the leislature to provide the means by which such p
olicy shall be carried out is usually not self-executing, such as:
a. Some provision on Article II on “Declaration of Principles and State Policies”
b. Article XIII on “ Social Justice and Human Rights”
c. Artcile XIV on “Education, Science and Technology, Arts, Culture and Sports.”

5. LIBERAL CONSTRUCTION; EXCEPTIONS - the Constitution shal be liberally construed in orde

r to accompish its laudable objective for which it was enacted as well as to carry ot the general
principles of the government. However, in case of prohibitory provisions in the Constitution, it i
s given strict interpretation.

6. IN CASE OF DOUBT, PROVISIONS OF THE CONSTITUTION SHOULD BE CONSIDERED MAND

ATORY RATHER THAN DIRECTORY; AND PROSPECTIVE RATHER THAN RETROACTIVE. - The p
rovisions of the Constitution are almost invariably mandatory and only in extreme meritorious c
ses or under th pressure of necessity that they can be construed as merely directory.

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STATE AND ITS CONCEPT

State - is a community of persons, more or less numerous, peranently ocuupying a definite por
tion of the territory,/independent of external control, and possessing an organized government
to which a great body of inhabitants render habitual obedience.

Elements of a State:
1. People - it refers to the inhabitants of the State. Must be suffucient in number capable of mai
ntaining its existence permanently (requires the presence of both sexes for purposes of procrea
tion).
2. Fixed Territory - definite prortion of the earth;s surface inhabited by the people of the State.
Must be permanent and sufficiently adequate to provide for its maintenance, development, an
d growth.
3. Organized Government - it is the agency or instrumentality through which the will of the Stat
e is formulated, expressed and realized.
4. Sovereignty - it is the supreme power inherent in a State by which the Stae is governed.
a. Internal Sovereignty - power of the State to control its domestic affairs.
b. External Sovereignty - power of the State to direct its relations with
other States.
c. Legal Sovereignty - power to issue final commands.
d. Political Sovereignty - power behind the legal sovereign.

Characteristics of Sovereignty:
1. Permanence
2. Exclusivity
3. Comprehensiveness
4. Imprescriptibility
5. Absoluteness
6. Individuality
7. Inalienablity

PRINCIPLE OF STATE CONTINUITY

- The disappearance of any of the elements of statehood would cause the extinction of the Stat
e, but mee changes as to one or more of the elements would not necessarily, as a rule, bring a
bout suhc extinction.
- when there is change of sovereignty, political laws whether compatible or not with those of th
e new sovereign are automatically abrogated. Municipal laws, on the other hand, are deemed i
n force, unless declared oherwise by the positive act of the new sovereign becuase they conflict
with the political laws of the new sovereign.

CONCEPT OF ASSOCIATION
- no province, city or municipality, not even ARMM, is recognized under our laws as having an
“associative” relationship wih the national government. Indeed, the concept implies powers tha
t go beyond anything ever granted by the Constitution to any local or regional government. It
alos implies the recoginition of the associated entity as a state.

Modes of Acquiring Territory

1. Discovery
2. Prescription
3. Accretion
4. Cession
5. Conquest

Classifications of government

1. As to the centralization of control

a. Unitary government – One in which the control of national and local, internal and external, af
fairs is exercised by the central or national government;
b. Federal government – One in which the powers of the government are divided between two
sets of organs, one for national affairs and the other for local affairs, each organ being suprem
e within its own sphere; consists of autonomous local government units merged into a single St
ate, with the national government exercising a limited degree of power over the domestic affair
s but generally full discretion of the external affairs of the State.

2. As to the existence or absence of title and/or control

a. De jure – Has a rightful title but no power or control, One that is established of a legitimate s
overeign.
b. De facto – Actually exercises power or control but without legal title (Lawyers League for a B
etter Philippines v. Aquino, G.R. No. 73748, May 22, 1986).

Kinds of de facto government

i. De facto proper – Government that gets possession and control of, or usurps, by force or by t
he voice of the majority, the rightful legal government and maintains itself against the will of th
e latter;
ii. Government of paramount force – Established and maintained by military forces who invade
and occupy a territory of the enemy in the course of war; and
iii. Independent government – Established by the inhabitants of the country who rise in insurrec
tion against the parent State (Co Kim Cham v. Valdez Tan Keh, G.R. No. L- 5, Sept. 17, 1945)

3. As to the concentration of powers in a government branch

a. Presidential government– There is separation of executive and legislative powers
NOTE: The principal identifying feature of a presidential form of government is the separation o
f powers doctrine. In presidential system, the President is both the head of State and the head
of government.
b. Parliamentary government – There is fusion of both executive and legislative powers in Parli
ament, although the actual exercise of the executive powers is vested in a Prime Minister who i
s chosen by, and accountable to the Parliament.

DOCTRINE OF STATE IMMUNITY

- THE STATE CANNOT BE SUED WITHOUT ITS CONSENT
- a sovereign is exempt from suit, not because of any formal conception or obsolete theory, bu
t on the logical and practical ground that there can be no legal right as against the authority th
at makes the law on which the right depends.
- it extends to an unincoporated government agency (performing governmental function) with
out any separate juridical personality of its own because it is invested with an inherent power of
sovereignty, likewise extends to complaints filed against public officials for acts done in the per
formance of their official functions.

The non-suablility of the state is not however an absolute rule.

- a state can be sued provided it has given its consent, which consent should come form the le
gislature, and no one else.
a. Express Consent - as when a law is passed by Congress allowing the
state, or any agency thereof to be sued.
b. Implied Consent - when it is the state that initiates litigation or when the
state or any agency of the governement has entered into a business
contract.

Air Transportation Office vs.Spouses Ramos

- the doctrine of sovereign immunity cannot be successfully invoked to defeat a valid claim for
compensation arising from the taking without just compensation and without the proper expro
priation proceedings being first resorted to on the plaintiff’s property.
- where private property had been taken in expropriation without just compensation being pai
d the defense of immunity from suit could not be set up by the State against an action for pay
ment by the owners.

Instances when a suit is considered one against the State:

1. When the Republic is sued by its name;
2. When the suit is against an unincorporated government agency;
3. When the suit is on its face against a government officer but the case is such that ultimate lia
bility will belong not to the officer but to the government.

Lansang vs. C.A.

- the doctrne of state immunity extends to complaints filed against public officials for acts don
e in the performance of their duties within the scope of their authority. However, this rule shall
not apply when:

1. The public official is charged in his official capacity for acts that are unlawful and injurious to t
he rights of others.;
2.The public official is clearly being sued not in his official capacity but in his personal capacity,
although the acts complained of may have been commited while he occupied a public position
.
 Likewise, there are instances where a public official may be sued without the State’s consent, s
uch as:
1. To compel him to do an act required by law (mandamus);
2. To restrain him from enforcing an act claimed to be unconstitutional (prohibition);
3. To compel payment of damages from/an already appropriated assurance fund or to refund t
ax over-payment from a fund already available for the prupose;
4. To secure a judgment that the officer impleaded may satisfy the judgment himself without th
e State having to do a positive act to assist him.

State’s waiver of immunity does not mean a concession of its liability - when a state gives its co
nsent to be sued, all it does is to give the other party an opportunity to show that the state is li
able. By consenting to be sued, the state does not necessarily admit that it is liable.

Immunity of a Foreign State to Local Jurisdiction

- foreign states are immune from suit in a local forum.
- “par in parem non habet imperium” - all states are sovereign equals and cannot assert jurisdic
tion over another.

Two Concepts of Sovereign Immunity:

1. Classical or Absolute Theory- which states that a sovereign cannot without its conent, be ma
de a respondent in the courts of anothe sovereign.
2. Restrictive Theory - posits that immunity of the sovereign is recognized only with regard to p
ublic acts or acts jure imperii, but not with regard to private acts or acts jure gestionis.

> The Philippines adheres to the restrictive theory. Hence, it is essential to determine the natur
e of the entity claiming immunity whether performing governmental or proprietary functions.

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NATIONAL TERRITORY

- it is not an indispensable requisite to define the territorial jurisdiction of a state, yet, it is impor
tant to precisely define the national territoryin oder to declare and make the world know which
area or areas he particular state is asserting its ownership.

THE ARCHIPELAGO DOCTRINE

- An imaginary baseline is connected with the outeermost portion of the archipelagi and all the
waters enclosed therein are considered as art of our internal waters.

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DECLARATION OF PRINCIPLES AND STATE POLICIES
- basically not self-executing provisions because Congress should still pass the laws required to
clearly define and effectuate such policies. These provision do not confer rights which can be e
nforced in the courts but only provide guidelines for legislative or executive action.

A. Republicanism (Sec. 1, Art. II)

Democracy or the “rule of the people” - iss a system of government in which all the people of a
state are involved in making decisions about its affairs
Republican State - is one which derives all its powers, directly or indirectly, from the great body
of the people and is administered by persons holding their offices for a limited period or durin
g good behavior. A government of the people, by the people and for the people.

Manifestation of a republican state:

1. The existence of the Bill of Rights;
2. The observance of the rule of majority;
3. The observance of the principle of separation of powers and checks and balances;
4. The observance of the priniciple that the state cannot be sued without its consent;
5. The observance of the principle that Congress cannot pass irrepealable laws;
6. The observance of the principle that “ours is government of laws and not of men”.
7. The presence of election through popular will or the ight of suffrage;
8. The observance of the law of public officers known as administrative law.

Observance of the Rule of Majority

1. The Senate shall elect its President and the House of Representatives, its Speaker by a majorit
y vote of all the respective members;
2. A majority of each House shall constitute a quorum to do business;
3. TheComission on Appointments shall rule by a majirty vote of all its members;
4. In case of vacancy in the Office of the Vice President, the President shall nominate a VP from
among the members of both Houses, subject to the confirmation by a majority vote of all the
members of the Congress, voting separatelly;
5. The majority of the Members of the Cabinet may declare the President unable to discharge h
is/her powers;
6. The Congress may revoke the President’s declaration of martial law or the suspension of the
Writ of Habeas Corpus by a majority vote of all the members of Congress voting jointly.

B. Renunciation of war as an instrument of national policy (Sec.2, Art. II)

- such constitutional provision refers only to the renunciation by the PH of aggressive war, and
not on, which is in defense of the State, as this is inherentin every state’s right to self-preservati
on.
- Congress with the concurrence of 2/3 of all its members, voting separately, may declare the e
xistence of a state of war.(Sec. 23[1], Art. VI )

C. Doctrine of Incorporation
- “international law” - refers to the body of rules and rinciples which governs the relations of n
ations and the citizens in their intercourse with one another.

International Law as part of domestic law:

1. Transformation Method - requires that an interntional law be transformed into a domestic la
w through a constitutional mechanism such as local legislation.
2. Incorporation Methos - applies when, by mere constitutional declaration, international law is
deemed to have the force of domestic law.

>Philippines adhere to the Doctrine of Incorporation.

Generally accepted principles of international law - refers to norms of genera or customary int
ernational law which are binding on all states, such as rennunciation of war, the principle of sov
ereign immunity, a person’s right to life, liberty, and due process, and pacta sunt servanda am
ong others.

Customary International Law - general and consistent practice of states followed by them from
a sense of legal obligation (opinio juris).
Material factor - how states behave
Subjective factor - why they behave the way they do

Mijares vs. Ranada

- generallly accepted principles of international law, by virtue of the incorporation clause of the
Constitution, form part of the laws of the land even if they don not derive from treaty obligatio
ns.

Kuroda vs. Jalandoni

- The Cout declared, “It cannot be denied that the rules and regulations of the Hague and Gen
eva Convention form part of and are wholly based on the generallly accepted principles of pu
blic international law... Such rules and principles, therefore form part of the law of our nation ev
en if the Philippines was not a signatory to the conventions embodying them, for our Constituti
on has been deliberately general and extensive in its scope and is not confined to the recogniti
on of rules and principles of international law as contained in treaties to which our government
may have been or shall be a signatory.”

Ang Ladlad vs. COMELEC

- with reference to the Application of International Human Rights Law. in relation to Sexual Orie
ntation and Gender Identity (Yogyakarta Principle), the Court declared that, “at this time, we are
not prepared to declare that these Yogyakarta Principle contain norms that are obligatory ton
the Philippines. There are declarations and obligations outlined in said Principles which are not
reflective of the current slate on international law, and do not find basis in any of the sources of
international law enumerated under Art. 38(1) of the Statute of the International Court of Justic
e.”

> In case of conflict between the municipal law or international law: if the conflict is unavoidabl
e, then apply the law of the forum (lex fori). Thus, if the forum is the local tribunal, municipal la
w prevails, if the forum is the international tribunal, international law prevails.

D. Foreign Policy (Sec. 7 and 8, Art. II)

- in the conduct of the coountry’s foreign relations, the state shall give paramount consideratio
n to national sovereignty, territorial integrity, national interest and the right to self-determinatio
n.

Act of State Doctrine - president’s acts of extending recognition to another state is as a rule no
t subject to judicial or legislative interference, as long as his act is not considered to have been
committed with grave abuse of discretion amounting to lack or excess of jurisdiction.

E. Civilian Supremacy (Sec. 3, Art. II)

- even without such express provision in the Constitution, supremacy of civiian authority over t
he military is inherent in republicanism.
- authority of the people as the ultimate repository of sovereign powers qnd the role of the mili
tary as the protector of the people and of the state in general.

F. Separation of Church and State (Sec.5,Art. III)(Sec.29[2],Art. VI)(Sec. 2,par.5,Art. IX-C)

- the wall of separation between Church and State is not a wall of hostility.
- The principle simply means that the Church should not meddle with the affairs of the govern
ment, and the State, not to intrude into the exclusive domain of the Church in propagating its f
aith.
union of church and state is prejudicial to both, for occasions might arise when the state will us
e the church, and the church, the state as a weapon in the furtherance of their respective ends
and aims.

Theories is Separation of Church and State

1. Strict Separationist Approach - the establishment clause was meant to protect the State from
the Church, and the State’s hostility towards religion allows no interaction between the two.
2. Strict Neutrality Approach - the State is not hostile in religion, but is strict in holding that reli
gion may not be used as a basis for classification for purposes of governmental action.
3. Benevolent Neutrality Approach - the “wall of separation” is meant to protect the Church fro
m the State. With respect to governmental actions, accomodations of religion may be allowed,
not to promote the government’s favored form of religion, but to allow individuals and groups
to exercise their religion without hindrance.

>Philippines adheres to the Benevolent Neutrality Approach.

Kinds of accommodation that result from free exercise claim :

1. Mandatory – Those which are found to be constitutionally compelled, i.e. required by
the Free Exercise Clause;
2. Permissive – Those which are discretionary or legislative, i.e. not required by the Free
Exercise Clause; and
3. Prohibited – Those which are prohibited by the religion clauses

G. Parens Patriae (Sec. 12, Art. II)

- the inherent duty of the State to protect those with less than full capacity to take adequate ca
re of their own interests.The State acts as guardian of the people especially those with legal dis
abilities.

H. Social Justice (Sec. 13, Art. II)

- Calalang vs. Williams
- salus populi est suprema lex
- Social justice does not champion division of property or equality of econommic status, what i
t guarantees are equality of opportunity, equality of political rights, equality before the law, equ
ality between values given and received.
- under the policy of social justice, the law bends backward to accomodate the interest o the w
orking class on the humane justification that those with less privilege in life should have more p
rivileges in law.
- the policy of social justice is not intended to countenance wrongdoing simply because it is co
mmitted by the underprivileged. At best it may mitigate the penalty but it certainly will not con
done the offense.

I. Local Autonomy (Sec 3 and 11, Art. XIII)

- Local Autonomy is the exercise of certain basic powers, like police powers, taxation, and emin
ent domain by local government units in orde to better serve and promote the interest and ge
neral welfare of the citizens.

Decentralization of Administration - when the central government delegates administrative po

wer to political subdivisions in order to broaden the base of governmental power and in the pr
ocess make local governments “more responsive and accountable”
Decentralization of Power - involves an abdication of politiccal power in favor of LGUs declared
to be autonomous, so that the autonomous government is free to chartt its own destiny and s
hape its future with minimum interference from the central authorities.

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DIVISION, ALLOCATION AND DELEGATION OF POWERS

Doctrine of Separation of Powers

- it implies that certain powers assigned by the Constitution to one department can neither be
surrendered nor delegated by that department, nor vested by statute in another department or
agency.
Legislative Department - to pass or create laws.
Executive Department - to approve and execute them.
Judicial Department - to apply and interpret them.

- it is designed by its originators to secure action and at the same time forestall overreaction w
hich necessarily results from undue concentartion of powers and thereby obtain efficiency and
prevent despotism.

Legislative veto - it was held that a statutory provision requiring the President or an administrat
ive agency to present the proposed IRR of a law to Congress which by itself or though a commi
ttee formed by it, retains a right or power to approve or disapprove such regulations before th
ey take effect is unconstitutional. It violates the principle of separation of powers as it entrusts t
o Congress a direct role in enforcing, applying, or implementing its own laws. (ABAKADA Guro
Party List vs. Purisima)

Checks and Balances

- any excessive exercise by one department may be checked by others in accordance with the
mode prescribed by the Constitution.
- the purpose of the principle of checks and balances is not only to arrest the excesses commit
ted by one department but also to keep the erring department within its boundaries as mandat
ed by the Constitution.

Examples:
“The President may veto any bill enacted by Congress whenever in his judgment the proposed
law will not promote the common good” (Sec. 27[1], Art. VI)
“The Congress may by two-thirds vote of each House, voting separatel, may override the veto
of the President in which case, the vetoed bill becomes a law.” (Sec. 27[1], Art. VI)

“A law, treaty or international agreement may be declared as unconstitutional by the Supreme

Court if appropriately raised by the proper party and upon fulfillment of the other conditions fo
r judicial review” (Sec. 1, Art. VIII)

Blending of powers
- is a principle where certain governmental acts, in order to be valid, requires the performance
of another act by another person or organ of the government to complete and validate the ac
t, otherwise the nonperformance of the latter act renders the initial act without any legal and bi
nding effect.

Examples:
“The President may grant amnesty subject to the concurrence of the majority of all the Membe
rs of the Congress” (Sec. 19, par.2, Art. VII)

“A Bill before it becomes a law requires presdential imprimatur” (Sec.22, Art. VI)

Judicial Intervention
- it must be stressed too that even when political questions are involved , the Courts have been
given the power to inquire as to whether or not there has been a grave abuse of discretion am
ounting to lack or excess of jurisdiction on th part of the official whose action is being question
ed, in which case, the act shall be subject to judicial scrutiny.

Political Question - are neatly associated with the wisdom, and not the legality of the particular
act.

PRINCIPLE OF NON-DELEGATION OF POWERS

- potestas delegata non delegari potest - “what has been delegated cannot be further delegate
d”
- it is based on the principle that the delegated power constitutes not only a right but a duty to
be performed by the delegate through the instrumentality of his own judgment and not throu
gh the intervening mind of another.
- Delegation of Legislative Power has been permitted in view of the increasing complexity of th
e task of government and the growing inability of the legislature to cope directly with the myria
d of problems demanding its attention and solution.

Belgica vs. Executive Secretary

- the Court observed the 2013 PDAF Article, insofar as it confers post-enactment identification
authority to individual legislators, violates the principle of non-delegability since said legislators
are effectively allowed to individually exercise the power of appropriation which is lodged in C
ongress.

Bengzon vs. Secretary of Justice

- The power of appropriation involves:
1. the seting apart by law of a certain sum from the public revenue for
2. a specified purpose.

Permissible Delegation
1. Delegation permitted by the Constitution
- Sec. 23(2), Art. VI; Sec. 28(2), Art. VI; Sec. 5(5), Art. VIII
2. Delegation to the Local Government Units
- creation of municipalities exercising local self-government. Such legislation is not regar
ded as a transfer of general legislative power, but rather the grant of authority to prescribe loca
l regulations.
- through RA 7160 (Local Government Code of 1991), the Congress has given the LGUs t
he power to execise eminent domain and polie power.
3. Delegation to the people at large
- the people as the ultimate repository of sovereign powers can exercise law-making po
wer and amend the Constitution.
4. Delegation to administrative bodies
- the legislature deened it necessary to entrust to administrative agencies the delegated
power to enact rules of procedure, which is popularyl known as the “power of subordinate legis
lation”.
- with such power, administrative bodies may implement the broad policies laid down in
a statute by “filling in” the details which the Congress may not have the opportunity or compet
ence to provide. - supplementary regulations.

TEST OF DELEGATION
1. Completeness Test - the law passed by Congress must be complete in all its essential terms a
nd conditions before it leaves the legislature such that when it reaches the delegate, there is no
thing left to be done butto enforce the law;
2. Sufficient Standard Test - the legislature must establish definite guidelines or limitations in th
e law to map out the boundaries of the delegate’s authority by which he is to be guided.