PHILIPPINE

POLITICS AND
GOVERNANCE
THE MEANING OF POLITICS
TEXTWIZT CHALLENGE.
ARRANGE THE JUMBLED
LETTERS INTO A WORD BASED
ON THE DEFINITION GIVEN IN
EACH ITEM.
1.
NANCEREV GOVERNAN
CE
OG -
 The term used specifically to
describe changes in the nature and
role of the state following the
public-sector reforms.
2.
POLITIC
SCITILO
S
P
- The activities associated with the
governance of a country or other area,
especially the debate or conflict among
individuals or parties having or hoping
to achieve power.
3.
SOCIA
LOCIA
L
S
relating to society or
its organization
4. GOVERNME
MEGVERON NT
NT -
- the governing body
of a nation, state, or
community.
5.
NATIO
TANONI
N
-
a large body of people united by
common descent, history,
culture, or language, inhabiting
a particular country or territory.
 OBJECTIVES
Explain the concept, relationship and importance of
politics, governance and government;
Clip photos showing political deeds; and
Demonstrate patriotism in improving Philippine
politics by being a role model and a law abiding
citizen.
 1. “WHAT IS POLITICS?”
―Politics is an activity that involves the
interaction of people whose relationship is
characterized by conflict and cooperation, and
come together to solve such disagreements
through binding solutions. (Heywood, 2013,
History of Politics)
 “WHAT MAKES SOCIAL
INTERACTIONS 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 is
political.
The word ‘politics‘ is derived from polis, meaning literally city-state‘.
Ancient Greek society was divided into a collection of
independent city-states, each of which possessed its own system
of government. The largest and most influential of these city-
states was Athens, often portrayed as the cradle of democratic
government. In this light, politics can be understood to refer to
the affairs of the polis – in effect, ‘what concerns the polis‘. The
modern form of this definition is therefore ‘what concerns the
state‘. This view of politics is clearly evident in the everyday use
of the term: people are said to be ‘in politics‘ when they hold
public office, or to be ‘entering politics‘ when they seek to do so.
POLITICS AND GOVERNANCE
IN THE PHILIPPINES
Politics - denotes a social activity which underlies the
creation of maintenance and amendment of social norms
and rules. It is also the art and science of the government
concerning the realm of public affairs or the state.
Governance - is the exercise of power/authority by
political leader for the well-being of their country‘s
citizens or subject. It also refers to the manner of
steering/governing and or directing and controlling a
group of people or the state.
BASIC CONCEPT OF POLITICS
1. ORDER – IS THE CENTRAL TO THE STUDY OF
POLITICS BECAUSE IT SHOWS DIFFERENT
COMPONENTS OF HUMAN SOCIETY.
STRUCTURES OF ORDER
 A. COMMUNITY – is one of social order which refers to
the association of individual who shares a common identity.
 B. GOVERNMENT – is the higher level of social order that
exist primarily for the maintenance and perpetuation of the
community.
 C. STATE – is the largest social order today and in which
the term politics originally derived.
2. POWER – the main source of reign of the
Government and the possession to govern or rule
the state.
3. JUSTICE – the process of legalizing and
penalizing the abuse of political power and power
to rule. Justice is in effect if the government gives
what people need, protect and respect their rights,
and put the common good over and above the
personal interest of the leaders.
 TWO APPROACHES TO THE
STUDY OF POLITICS
POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY – It is the traditional
approach in which the primary goal is to understand the
essence or the truth about politics.
POLITICAL SCIENCE – It is the empirical/objective
approach in which it places little emphasis on abstract and
normative question and concentrates on a dispassionate and
objective of the realities of politics.
 PROCESSES AND ACTORS IN
GOVERNANCE
Decision-Making - refers to the process by which a
person or group of persons, guided by socio-
political structures, arriving at a decision involving
their individual and communal needs and wants.
Implementation - is the process that logically
follows the decision.
 ACTORS AND STRUCTURES
 An actor - is a sector or group or institution that participates in the process of
decision-making and implementation.
 A structure - refers to an organization or mechanism that formally or informally
guides the decision-making process and sets into the motion the different actors
and apparatuses in the implementation process.
 Informal Actors and Bad Governance – Their influence is felt more clearly in
local governments, such as organized crime syndicates and powerful families, and
in rural and urban areas. Most often than not, these actors are the cause of
corruption, in that legitimate government objectives are distorted by their illegal
and private interests. Worse, they manipulate government officials and agencies,
and cause widespread yet organized violence in the community. In urban and rural
areas, for example, the rich and powerful families control the economy by
controlling the local government officials. They bring about a controlled
environment so that decisions must always favor them.
 INDICATORS OF GOOD
GOVERNANCE
1. Participation – is the active involvement of all affected and
interested parties in the decision-making process. Participation
is one of the strengths of Philippine governance. The 1987
Philippine Constitution contains provisions dealing with
relational and inter-sectoral governance. The Local
Government Act of 1989 was borne out of the need for
decentralization in Philippine governance. As such, these and
other related legislations may be considered as normative
standards for good governance.
 2. Rule of Law – in this indicator, democracy becomes essential. It
demands that the people and the civil society render habitual
obedience to the law. It also demands that the government acts
within the limits of the powers and functions which are prescribed
by the law. In the Philippines however, this needs proper
implementation and reformation particularly among the law
making body. Despite being one of the oldest democracies in the
region, it ranked last among seven indexed Asian countries
according to the World Justice Project Rule of Law Index.
Generally, the reasons for ranking last are ―lack of respect for
law,‖ ―pervasive and systemic corruption in the government,‖ and
―circumvention of the law.‖ Lack of respect for law is generally
caused by distrust on the integrity of law enforcement agencies.
3. Effectiveness and Efficiency – this indicator requires that
actors meet the needs of the society for effective governance. This
means that the valuable resources are utilized, without wasting or
underutilizing any of them. Enhancement and standardization of
the quality of public service delivery consistent with international
standards, professionalization of bureaucracy should be observed
while efforts must be made in order to attain effectiveness and
efficiency in Philippine governance. The Anti-Red Tape Act of
2007 (ARTA), for instance, was passed to require the setting up of
Citizen‘s Charter for a simplified procedure and to facilitate
governmental transactions. Also, many government departments
and agencies pursued a rationalization program to check
excessive and redundant staffing.
 4. Transparency – this indicator means that people are open to
information regarding decision-making process and the
implementation of the same. In legal terms, it means that information
on matters of public concern are made available to the citizens or those
who will be directly affected. It also means that transactions involving
public interests must be fully disclosed and made accessible to the
people. Efforts were made in pursuit of transparency in Philippine
governance and as far as the government sector is concerned, the
current administration, consistent with its drive of curbing corruption,
promotes honesty and integrity in public service. It has currently
passed the Freedom of Information Bill and other related legislations,
as well as intensified people‘s engagement in local governance.
Transparency in budget and disbursements are, however, still far from
being substantially implemented.
 5. Responsiveness - means that institutions and processes serve all stakeholders in
a timely and appropriate manner. It also means that actors and structures of
governance easily give genuine expression to the will or desire of the people.
Some of the important efforts made to attain responsive governance in the
Philippines are decentralization, creation of citizen‘s charter in all frontline
agencies (as required by ARTA), and gender sensitivity programs. First, through
decentralization, local governments, which are more proximate to their
constituents, serve more promptly the people, who in turn become more involved
in decision-making. Second, every government agency now has it Citizen‘s
Charter, which provides time frames for every step in attaining frontline services.
Agencies now must also respond to written queries sent by the stakeholders or
interested parties within a period of ten days, otherwise there will be delayed
service. However, this aspect of governance still remains to be one of the causes
for the decline of public‘s confidence in the public sector. Although the ARTA has
been passed, there is still so much delay in public service delivery. The failure of
the government agencies to explain the charters to the stakeholders is one of the
main reasons why there is still delay.
6. Equity and Inclusiveness - means that all the members of
the society, especially the most vulnerable ones or the
grassroots level, must be taken into consideration in policy-
making. Social equity, as an example, refers to a kind of
justice that gives more opportunity to the less fortunate
members of the society. The Philippine Government has
done extensive efforts in promoting equity and inclusiveness.
The Constitution makes it as one of its state policies the
promotion of social justice. Pursuant to this, the Congress
has enacted social legislations like the Comprehensive
Agrarian Reform Law which aims at freeing the farmer
tenants from the bondage of the soil.
7. Consensus Oriented - Governance is consensus oriented
when decisions are made after taking into consideration the
different viewpoints of the actors of the society. Among the
things done by the Philippines in promoting a consensus
oriented governance are:
(1) creation of a wide-based of representation in the Congress;
 (2) a two-tiered legislature or bicameralism which subjects
legislation to the evaluation of national and district legislators;
and
 (3) necessity of public hearings or consultations of various
governmental policies and actions.
 8. Accountability - means answerability or responsibility for one‘s
action. It is based on the principle that every person or group is
responsible for their actions most especially when their acts affect
public interest. Accountability comes in various forms: political,
hierarchical, and managerial accountability. Political accountability
refers to the accountability of public officials to the people they
represent. Hierarchical accountability refers to the ordered
accountability of the various agencies and their respective officers
and personnel in relation to their program objectives. Managerial
accountability refers to employee accountability based on
organization and individual performance.
CURRENT STATE OF GOVERNANCE IN THE
PHILIPPINES
 The Philippines is plagued by bad governance. Based on the six
dimensions of governance in the Worldwide Governance Indicators
(WGI), it ranks in the lower half of the percentile. In 2010-2011, the
Philippines ranked only 85th in the Global Competitive Index (GCI),
lagging behind most of its Southeast Asian neighbors. The decline of
trust on the actors of governance and the consequential poor economic
condition were brought about by the systemic corruption among and
between public officials and private organizations. In 2013, it ranked
94th among 177 countries in the Corruption Perception Index. Among
the key institutions in the Philippines perceived to be most corrupt based
on the Global Corruption Index are ―political parties, ―judiciary,
―police, ―public officials and civil servants, and ―legislature. This
means all branches of the Philippine government are now challenged.
Answer the following questions.
1. How can Philippine politics be improved?
2. As a student, what is your role for its
improvement?

CRITERIA/ RUBRIC :
ORGANIZATION—---------15
STRUCTURE-----------------10
TOTAL --------------------- 25
INSTRUCTIONS: READ THE FOLLOWING
STATEMENTS. WRITE “POLITICAL” IF IT SHOWS
POLITICAL ACTIONS AND ―NOT POLITICAL IF IT
SHOWS OTHERWISE. WRITE THE ANSWER IN YOUR
NOTEBOOK
1. Joining a protest rally or demonstration
2. Running for an elective post
3. Campaigning a candidate for a political party
4. having a haircut
5. signing up for Facebook accoun
6. Swimming at the beach.
7. The Philippine government filing an arbitration case against China.

8. Indigenous people protesting against mining activities.