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The Philippine Congress and the Barrio Electoral Process
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 07 April 2011
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Filipino barrios are mostly rural villages. They are, in legal parlance, the smallest political subdivisions in the Philippine system of local governments. Before the fifties barrio government was virtually non-existent. Although there were barrio lieutenants appointed by municipal mayors, it was not until the mid-fifties that councils began to give the barrios a semblance of government — mostly in form rather than in substance —similar to the commission plan of American local government. Under the unitary system of Filipino government, all local governments, except those in the chartered cities, are governed by the Revised Administrative Code. To give the barrio a government of its own and to grant its citizens the right to vote for their own officials would require an amendment to this Code by the Philippine Congress. Thus, the establishment of the first elective barrio councils in 1956 was the result of an amendment to an appropriate section of that Code. Later in 1959 the Philippine Congress became more generous by granting the barrios a general charter which defined in more definitive terms the scope and nature of barrio councils and the manner in which members of these councils were chosen. The purpose of this article is to identify the major issues on the barrio electoral process which confronted the Philippine Congress and to provide some insight into the manner in which these issues were resolved.
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References
1 Republic Act No. 1245, Approved June 1955, Sec. 2. According to this section, it was provided that one may be elected to a barrio council position “regardless of political affiliation.”
2 The phrase “any qualified voter… may be elected regardless of political affiliation…” provided in Republic Act No. 1245 was suppressed by subsequent legislation a few months after the former was passed. See Republic Act No. 1408, approved September 1955.
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6 Some of the names attached to these “parties” were “The Light Bringers Party,” “The Common Tao (common man) Party,” “The Golden Leaf Party,” “The Redeemers Party,” and “The Poorarian (a corruption of the English word, ‘poor’) Party.” Among their slogans were: “Vote Sergeant Kito for barrio councillor ’cause he loves the poor.” “Vote Pinoy the Right Guy for barrio mayor.” and “A Vote For Choleng for barrio treasurer means progressive barrio living.” See Philippines Free Press, January 30, 1960, p. 66Google Scholar; Rama, Napoleon G., “Barrio Folks At The Polls,” Philippines Free Press, January 16, 1960, p. 37Google Scholar; and The Manila Times, February 1, 1960, p. 10–A.Google Scholar
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23 Villanueva, A Study of the Competence of Barrio Citizens To Conduct Barrio Government, supra., p.84.
24 Loc. Cit.
25 Ibid.
26 Ibid. A case study found that secret ballots had been used by 6 4% of all total barrio councils surveyed; open balloting in the form of raising hands and counting heads, 19%; voice vote, 4 %; roll call, 11% and house to house canvassing, 2%.
27 Villanueva, A study of the Competence of Barrio Citizens To Conduct Barrio Government, et. passim., p.88 and his The Barrio People and Barrio Government, et. passim., p.9.
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* Italics mine. The term poblacion is a Spanish word meaning “population.” But the term has been used in the Philippines to refer to the centre of the town and the place, where the town hall is located.
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59 Ibid.
60 Ibid.
61 Senate Congressional Record, 1: 942, April 22, 1958.Google Scholar
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67 Ibid.
68 Ibid.
69 Ibid.
70 Ibid.
71 Ibid.
72 Ibid.