PHILIPPINE POLITICS

AND
GOVERNANCE
Michelle B. Kiw-wa
 Lesson 1
Politics, Governance and other Key
Concepts
 WHAT IS POLITICS?
• In broadest sense, politics is the activity
through which people make, preserve and
amend the general rules under which they live.
 According to Experts
Experts Definitions
Heywood 2007 activity or process through which groups reach and
enforce binding decisions.

Heywood (2013) as an activity that involves the interaction of people,

whose relationship is characterized by conflict and
cooperation, and who come together to solve such
disagreements through binding solutions. However,
politics is no utopian solution. There are
disagreements that remain as such.
Hague & Harrop activity by which different interests are conciliated by
2013 giving them a share in power in proportion to their
importance to the welfare and the survival of the
whole community.
 According to Experts
Experts Definitions
Crick 2005 set of activities that organizes individuals, systematically
resolves disputes, and maintains order in society through
creation and enforcement of rules and government
policy.
Barrington et al. activity through which human beings attempt to improve
2010 their lives and create the Good Society.
Aristotle - said that, “Man is by nature a political animal.” The
(Father of Political inclination and interest of people toward anything political
Science) is based on the fact that individuals are inherently social.
- It is a social activity through which people make and
amend the general rules that guide their political life.
•Political science
- is a social science discipline that studies the state and the
government.
•Social interaction
- It is the building block of politics. Beard, M. (2014),
- is the process of reciprocal influence exercised by
individuals over one another during social encounter. It
can be in the form of exchange, competition, conflict,
cooperation, and accommodation.
•What makes a social interaction a political one?
 Any form of social interaction that involves the art of
government, public affairs, compromise and consensus, or
power and distribution of resources.
 Different Views about Politics
Views on Politics: Description of Politics
Politics as …..
“art of government” Politics concerns the affairs of the state. It focuses on
the personnel and machinery of the government.

“public affairs” Politics is the conduct and management of public

interest and, therefore, political affairs.
“compromise and Politics attempts to resolve conflict through discussion,
consensus” compromise, bargain, and consensus, wherein people
arrive at a binding decision.
“power and Politics involves the exercise of authority in the
distribution of production, distribution, and use of resources. This
resources” describes who gets what and under what
circumstances.
 Government and Governance
• The Government and its Purposes According to Mendoza (1999)
Government
- is the term generally used in referring the formal institutions through which
a group of people is ruled or governed and the term extends to include the
people and organizations that make, enforce, and apply political decisions
for a society.

• Governance according to Tamayo (2014)

- is commonly defined as the exercise of power or authority by political
leaders for attainment of the well-being of their country’s citizens or
inhabitants. He added that it is a complex process in which some sectors of
society exercise power and create public policies that directly affect the
members of society
 Indicators of Good Governance
• Good governance according to Kio Sheng (2010) and Tamayo (2014) is
understood through its eight indicators or characteristics:
1. Participatory
2. Rule of Law
3. Effective and Efficient
4.Transparent
5. Responsive
6. Equitable and Inclusive
7. Consensus Oriented
8. Accountability
 FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT
Formative Exercise 1: CONCEPT MAPPING
Instruction: Complete the concept map by listing all related concepts to the main word “Politics, Government
and governance” based from the previous discussion. Below the concept map, write five or more sentences that
explain the relationship of each word and the importance of each concept. (20PTS) (12 pts - Concept map, 8
pts – Explanation)

POLITICS GOVERNMENT GOVERNMENT

Explanation:

_________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________
 POLITICAL IDEOLOGIES
Political ideas did not come out of nowhere. They are
shaped and continuously reshaped by current socio-
historical, economic, and political circumstances. Political
ideas shape the nature of political systems and serve as
glue that binds societies together. Political ideologies are
so powerful that they do not only direct individual behavior.
They also shape the structure of a government, a political
system, and an entire country.
 Ideology (according to Heywood (2007)

- refers to a system of beliefs about how society should function,

behave, and operate. He further explains that from a social-
scientific viewpoint, an ideology is a more or less coherent set
of ideas that provides a basis for organized political action, whether this
is intended to preserve, modify or overthrow the existing system of
power relationships.
 Functions of Political Ideology
Political ideologies are very important in a society. Heywood
(2007) also described the following functions of political ideology:
1. It offers an account of the existing order by examining what
works and what does not work, as well as other various issues and
problems that the state and the broader society are confronted with.
2. It provides a model of a desired social order, a vision of the
Good Society.
3. It outlines how political change or the desired social order can be
achieved.
 Major Political Ideologies
POLITICAL KEY TENETS
IDEOLOGIES
1. Belief in individualism underscores the importance of the human individual compared to
any other group.
2. Liberty of the individual must be protected to give him/her the freedom to act as she/he
pleases.
1. Liberalism
3. Equality implies that individuals are born equal, at least in moral terms. Equal rights and
entitlements are at its core. However, it does not endorse social equality or equality of
outcome.

1. Tradition must be conserved, this includes established customs, institutions, and ways of
doing things that have endured through time.
2. The belief in pragmatism highlights the limits of human reason. As a belief, pragmatism
emphasizes that action should be shaped by practical circumstances and goals.
3. Human Imperfection presents the pessimistic view of conservatives on the individual.
2. Conservatism Accordingly, individuals are morally corrupt and are the sources of crime and disorder.
Order could be achieved through a strong state.
4. Authority must be exercised from above. Leadership is provided to guide and support
those who lack knowledge and education and those who have little capacity to act for their
own interest.
 Major Political Ideologies
POLITICAL KEY TENETS
IDEOLOGIES
1. Belief in the community highlights the degree to which the individual is
connected with others. Identity is a product of social interaction more than innate
qualities.
2. Fraternity speaks of a shared common humanity. Thus, it prefers cooperation
3. Socialism rather than competition, and collectivity rather than individualism.
3. It puts primacy on social equality over other values as the basis for social
stability and cohesion.
4. Common ownership is the central thought. It means to harness material
resources for the common good.
1. The exploitation of the proletariat (workers) by the capitalists (owners of the
means of production) would develop class consciousness among the former, hence
ushering a proletarian revolution which will facilitate the creation of a communist
4. Marxism society.
2. A communist society-one that is classless and stateless-will arise when class
antagonisms fade.
 Major Political Ideologies
POLITICAL KEY TENETS
IDEOLOGIES
1. This ideology promotes compromise between the acceptance of
capitalism and the distribution of wealth according to moral, rather
than market principles.
5. Social 2. Social democratic thought is concerned with the weak, the
Democracy vulnerable, and the underdog.
3. Compassion, common humanity, freedom, equal opportunities,
paternal duty, and care are among the values it recognizes.

1. This is an ultranationalist ideology. It subscribes to the idea of a

supreme race, whose members should enjoy the natural resources,
exclusive to members.
6. Fascism 2. It has an anti-character: anti-liberalism, anti-individualism, anti-
capitalism, etc.
 Major Political Ideologies
POLITICAL KEY TENETS
IDEOLOGIES
1. The state, or any political authority, is seen as both evil and
unnecessary.
7. Anarchism 2. It prefers a stateless society. Individuals can best manage
their own affairs through voluntary agreement and cooperation.

1. It is diverse but its unifying theme is the desire to enhance

the social role of women.
2. Society is characterized by sexual or gender inequality. The
8. Feminism structure of male power must be overturned, hence the belief
in gender equality.
 Major Political Ideologies
POLITICAL IDEOLOGIES KEY TENETS

1. This ideology is linked with the emergence of

environmental movement. It also rose as a revolt
against industrialization.
9. Ecologism 2. It is concerned with the damages brought by
economic development and by the declining quality
of human existence.

1. Ideological expression of globalization.

2. It is a belief in a cosmopolis or a world state. It is
associated with the project of world government.
10. Cosmopolitanism
 Q&A

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