LESSON OBJECTIVES
Discuss the meaning and importance of government
• Analyze the structure of the national government of the Philippines
• Discuss the functions of the three branches of the government (executive, legislative, and judiciary)
SUCCESS CRITERIA
The learners are able to:
Identify the government officials
Discuss the qualifications, functions, and terms of the office of government officials
DISCUSSION
3 Branches of the Philippine Government (youtube.com)
The Purpose of Government for Kids - YouTube
The government is one of the four elements of our country. It is an organization through which the people can express will, sentiments, needs, hopes, and aspirations. The foremost duty of the government is to serve the people and promote their welfare and well-being. It exercises political control and direction over the actions of its members, citizens, and inhabitants.
National Government
Under the 1987 Constitution, the three branches of the national government are:
1. Executive – composed of the president, vice president, and the Cabinet members
2. Legislative – divided into the Senate and House of Representatives
3. Judiciary – composed of the Supreme Court and the lower courts
Article VII, Section 1 of the 1987 Constitution states that the president is both the head of the government and of the state. The president has direct control and supervision of his/her cabinet members, also known as department secretaries. He/ She has the power to implement the laws, formulate programs that will benefit the people, and administer the offices of the government. As the head of the state, the president represents the Republic in the world community.
Second to the president is the vice president. His/Her most important role is to assume the duties of the president if the president cannot perform his/her functions. A second to the line of succession, the vice president ensures that the Republic remains stable in case of emergency. He/She may serve as one of the members of the Cabinet.
Terms of Office
The president and the vice president are elected by direct vote of the people and each shall serve for a term of six years. The constitution sets a term limit for the president. The president may only serve for one term. However, the vice president is allowed to seek re-election for a second term.
Qualifications
The following are the qualifications required for those seeking the presidential and vice presidential positions:
1. A natural-born Filipino citizen
2. A registered voter
3. Can read and write
4. At least 40 years of age on the day of the election
5. A resident of the Philippines for at least 10 years prior to the election
Powers and Duties
1. Has control over all executive departments, bureaus, and offices
2. Appoints all members of his/her cabinet, which includes the secretaries and heads of other minor agencies that are subordinate to the president of the Philippines
The following are also appointed by the president: ambassadors and consuls; officers of the armed forces, from the rank of colonel and naval captain; heads of bureaus and offices; members of the Supreme Court; the heads of the Sandigan Bayan; and the heads of the Constitutional Commissions. These appointments, however, are subject to the approval of the Commission on Appointments.
a. As the commander-in-chief of all the Armed Forces, he/she may call out these forces to supress rebellion and/or repel foreign aggressions
b. Ensures the proper implementation of laws
c. Contracts of guarantees foreign loans on behalf of the republic, provided that these loans are subject to the approval of the Central Monetary Authority and subject to the limitations of the law
d. Submits a budget of expenditures to Congress within 30 days from the opening of the regular session
e. Addresses the Congress at the opening of the regular session, makes a report to the nation, and explains his/her program of the government
f. Represents the country in international conferences with other nations
g. Performs all other duties as provided by the law
The Vice President
1. Performs tasks and assignments ordered by the president
2. Be a member of the Cabinet or any other post to which the president assigns him/her
3. Cooperates with the president in the various programs of the government
4. Performs other tasks as provided by the law
How do the president and vice president, by performing their functions, promote the country’s development?
The Cabinet
The members of the Cabinet are all appointees of the president and they all serve at his/her pleasure. Thus, they can be asked to resign for nonperformance or poor achievement in office or when public clamor demands it. Cabinet members perform their tasks in accordance with the president’s program for development and progress.
Each department of the executive branch is headed by a Cabinet secretary. The Cabinet or department secretary proposes an annual budget that the president incorporates in the national budget that he/she submits to Congress.
The budget allocated by the Congress is used for all the operating expenses and programs of each department. The Cabinet secretary is also expected to submit his/her program for the incoming year to the president. All these programs are subject to the approval of the president.
How does the Cabinet support the president’s duties and responsibilities?
Government Cabinet: Understanding the System - Quick Overview (youtube.com)
The Legislative Branch
The Philippines has a bicameral legislature. This means that there are two houses in Congress—the Senate and the House of Representatives.
Qualifications
Senators
1. A natural-born citizen of the Philippines
2. At least 35 years of age prior to the election
3. Can read and write
4. A registered voter
5. A resident of the Philippines for at least two years prior to the election
Representatives
1. A natural-born citizen of the Philippines
2. At least 25 years of age prior to the election
3. A registered voter in his/her district (except for party list)
4. A resident of the Philippines for at least two years prior to the election
Terms of Office
For the senators, the term of office shall be six years while for the district representatives, the term of office shall be three years. No senator shall serve for more than two executive terms, while no representative shall serve for more than three consecutive terms.
Membership
The legislature has a total of 24 members for the Senate and 287 members (15th Congress of the Philippines) for the House of Representatives. The members of the Senate are elected nationwide, while those of the Lower House are elected by the districts that they represent. At least 20% of the total membership of the Lower House is allotted for sectoral or party list representatives. They represent the labor group, urban poor, indigenous people, women, youth, business people, the physically challenged, and others, except the religious sector.
Power and Duties
1. Make laws
2. Enter or make treaties with other countries
3. Approve appropriations of the national budget
4. Improve or set forth taxes
5. Approve or reject the president’s appointments through the Commission on Appointments. This body is composed of the Senate President as chairman, 12 senators, and 12 representatives.
The Judiciary Branch
Article VIII, Section 1 of the 1987 Constitution provides that the judicial power is vested in one Supreme Court and courts that may be lower courts that may be established by law. All cases of violations of the laws of the land are tried before the Lower Court that has jurisdiction over them.
Judicial power is the power to apply the law or laws to disputes concerning legally recognized rights or duties between the state and the private people. It is also applied to disputes between individuals accusing each other or others before the courts.
The Supreme Court is the highest court of the land. It is composed of 15 justices with the chief justice as head. The Supreme Court exercises administrative supervision of all courts all over the Philippines, including their employees.
Qualifications
The qualifications for members of the Supreme Court and lower collegiate courts are divided into legal and moral. The following are the legal qualifications:
1. Must be natural-born citizen of the Philippines
2. Must be 40 years old
3. Must have served as a judge of a lower court for at least 15 years or engaged in the practice of law in the Philippines
The moral qualifications of a judge are stated in the new provision of the 1987 Constitution that requires the members of the judiciary “to be a person of competence, integrity, probity, and independence.”
Judges for the inferior courts do not have to be natural-born citizens. Naturalized citizens can also be appointed to the lower courts, provided that they must meet all other legal requirements.
Terms of Office
All members of the judiciary enjoy permanent status. The Supreme Court justice cannot be removed from office unless by impeachment. Those in the inferior courts can be removed by the Supreme Court but only for just causes.
The age of retirement for members of the judiciary is 70 years old.
Powers and Duties
These are some of the powers of the Supreme Court under our Constitution:
1. Exercise original jurisdiction over cases affecting ambassadors, other public ministers, and consuls
2. Review, revise, reverse, modify, or affirm appeals, final judgements, and orders of the lower courts in the following:
a. All cases in which the constitutionality or validity of any treaty, international or executive agreement, law, presidential decree, proclamation, order, instruction, ordinance, or regulation is in question
b. All cases involving the legality of any tax, impost, assessment or toll, or any penalty imposed in relation to them
c. All cases in which the jurisdiction of any lower court is an issue
d. All criminal cases in which the penalty imposed is reclusion perpetua or higher
1. What is the primary role of the executive department?
2. What is the primary role of the legislative department?
3. What is the primary role of the judicial department?
4. How can you participate in the functions and activities of the barangay/city?
5. Do you think the president needs the big member of Cabinet secretaries to run the government? Justify your answer.