A group of lawyers from the University of the Philippines has finally asked the Supreme Court to compel both the Senate and House of Representatives to pass a law defining and prohibiting political dynasties.
“It has been 37 years since the enactment of the 1987 Constitution and yet Congress sat on their constitutional mandate under Section 26, Article II, that they should enact a law on political dynasties and define what political dynasties are,” said Rico Domingo, a UP College of Law graduate.
The specific provision indicates that “the State shall guarantee equal access to opportunities for public service, and prohibit political dynasties as may be defined by law.”
According to the lawyers, their petition was aimed at bringing to the attention of the high court what it called a “monumental omission, a deplorable and egregious neglect of Congress to perform an express duty.”
“While there had been well-meaning efforts by some conscientious legislators, records of Congress do not show that any bill defining and prohibiting political dynasties had been passed into law,” they added.
As early as the 8th Congress in 1987, there had been unsuccessful attempts to introduce an anti-political dynasty law to carry out electoral and political reforms. Studies, which can probably be confirmed by and person on the street, attributed this to the fact that many members of Congress come from political clans themselves.
According to data during the 2019 elections, 80 percent of governors, 67 percent of House of Representatives, and 53 percent of mayors came from “fat” political dynasties, or those in which several members of a family hold government positions simultaneously.
Furthermore, a 2019 study by the Ateneo de Manila University’s School of Government pointed to high levels of poverty and inequalities in areas where political dynasties thrive, especially in the provinces.
The longer it takes, the more resistance is expected from our legislators who have been dilly dallying while political dynasties grow in power, influence, and even wealth with every passing decade. Will the Supreme Court listen to the appeal of the lawyers, and compel their equals at the legislative branch to do their duty as far as political dynasties are concerned, or Filipinos stuck with these powerful families that dominate our country’s politics by banding together to prioritize their own selfish interests over that of the country they swore to serve?*
