What are the tests to determine whether a proposed change is an amendment or a

revision?
1. Quantitative test asks whether the proposed change is as extensive in its provisions as to
change directly the substantial entirety of the Constitution by the deletion or alteration of
numerous existing provisions. One examines only the number of provisions affected and
does not consider the degree of the change.
2. Qualitative test asks whether the change will accomplish such far reaching changes in
the nature of our basic governmental plan as to amount to a revision. (Lambino v. Comelec,
G.R. No. 174153, October 25, 2006)
How may the Constitution be amended?
1. Proposal
a. By Congress upon a vote of of all its members acting as Constituent Assembly (ConAss)
b. By Constitutional Convention (ConCon)
c. By Peoples Initiative upon a petition of at least 12% of the total number of registered
voters, of which every legislative district must be represented by 3% of the registered voters
therein.
2. Ratification
What are the three (3) kinds of initiative under R.A. 6735?
A:
1. Initiative on the Constitution
2. Initiative on statutes
3. Initiative on local legislation
What are the manifestations of Republicanism?
A: The following are the manifestations of Republicanism:
1. Ours is a government of laws and not of men.
2. Rule of Majority (Plurality in elections)
3. Accountability of public officials
4. Bill of Rights
5. Legislature cannot pass irrepealable laws
6. Separation of powers
Permissible delegations: PETAL
1. Delegation to the People through initiative and referendum. (Sec. 1, Art. VI, 1987
Constitution)
2. Emergency powers delegated by Congress to the President. (Sec. 23(2), Art. VI)
3. Congress may delegate Tariff powers to the President. (Sec. 28 (2),Art. VI)
4. Delegation to Administrative bodies also known as the power of subordinate legislation/
quasi-legislative powers.
5. Delegation to Local Governments
Emergency powers delegated by Congress to the President. (Sec. 23(2), Art. VI)
Note: The conditions for the vesture of emergency powers are the following:
a. There must be war or other national emergency.
b. The delegation is for a limited period only.
c. Delegation is subject to restrictions as Congress may prescribe.
d. Emergency powers must be exercised to carry a national policy declared by Congress.

What are the two tests to determine whether the delegation of legislative power is valid
or not?
A:
a. Completeness Test The law must be complete in all essential terms and conditions when
it leaves the legislature so that there will be nothing left for the delegate to do when it reaches
him except to enforce it.
b. Sufficient Standard Test If the law does not spell out in detail the limits of the delegates
authority, it may be sustained if delegation is made subject to a sufficient standard.
What are the functions of the Government?
A:
1. Constituent mandatory for the government to perform because they constitute the very
bonds of society.
2. Ministrant intended to promote the welfare, progress and prosperity of the people.
What are the classifications of government on the basis of legitimacy?
1. De jure government - a government truly and lawfully established by the Constitution of a
State but which having been in the meantime displaced is actually cut off from power or
control.
2. De facto government - a government of fact; one actually exercising power and control in
the State as opposed to the true and lawful government.
What are the requisites for the validity of local ordinance?
A: GC-not-CUPPU
1. Must not Contravene the constitution and any statute
2. Must not be Unfair or oppressive
3. Must not be Partial or discriminatory
4. Must not Prohibit, but may regulate trade
5. Must not be Unreasonable
6. Must be General in application and Consistent with public policy. (Magtajas vs. Pryce
Properties Corporation, Inc, G.R. No. 111097 July 20, 1994)
What are the classes of legislative power?
A: ODECO
1. Original: Possessed by the people in their sovereign capacity i.e. initiative and referendum.
2. Delegated: Possessed by Congress and other legislative bodies by virtue of the
Constitution.
3. Constituent: The power to amend or revise the Constitution.
4. Ordinary: The power to pass ordinary laws.
Freedom of Speech and Debate
Requisites:
(1) The speech or debate must be made in Congress or in any
committee thereof.
(2) The congress must be in session.

What are the guidelines in determining who may participate in the party-list elections?
In determining who may participate in the coming 13 May 2013 and subsequent party-list
elections, the COMELEC shall adhere to the following parameters:
1. Three different groups may participate in the party-list system: (1) national parties or
organizations, (2) regional parties or organizations, and (3) sectoral parties or organizations.
2. National parties or organizations and regional parties or organizations do not need to
organize along sectoral lines and do not need to represent any marginalized and
underrepresented sector.
3. Political parties can participate in party-list elections provided they register under the partylist system and do not field candidates in legislative district elections. A political party, whether
major or not, that fields candidates in legislative district elections can participate in party- list
elections only through its sectoral wing that can separately register under the party-list
system. The sectoral wing is by itself an independent sectoral party, and is linked to a political
party through a coalition.
4. Sectoral parties or organizations may either be marginalized and underrepresented or
lacking in well-defined political constituencies. It is enough that their principal advocacy
pertains to the special interest and concerns of their sector. The sectors that are
marginalized and underrepresented include labor, peasant, fisherfolk, urban poor,
indigenous cultural communities, handicapped, veterans, and overseas workers. The sectors
that lack well-defined political constituencies include professionals, the elderly, women, and
the youth.
5. A majority of the members of sectoral parties or organizations that represent the
marginalized and underrepresented must belong to the marginalized and
underrepresented sector they represent. Similarly, a majority of the members of sectoral
parties or organizations that lack well-defined political constituencies must
belong to the sector they represent. The nominees of sectoral parties or organizations that
represent the marginalized and underrepresented, or that represent those who lack welldefined political constituencies, either must belong to their respective sectors, or must have
a track record of advocacy for their respective sectors. The nominees of national and regional
parties or organizations must be bona-fide members of such parties or organizations.
6. National, regional, and sectoral parties or organizations shall not be disqualified if some of
their nominees are disqualified, provided that they have at least one nominee who remains
qualified (Atong Paglaum, Inc. v. COMELEC, G.R. 203766, April 2, 2013).
How shall the party-list representative seats be allocated?
A: In determining the allocation of seats for party-list representatives under Section 11 of R.A.
No. 7941, the following procedure shall be observed:
1. The parties, organizations, and coalitions shall be ranked from the highest to the lowest
based on the number of votes they garnered during the elections.
2. The parties, organizations, and coalitions receiving at least 2% of the total votes cast for
the party-list system shall be entitled to one guaranteed seat each.
3. Those garnering sufficient number of votes, according to the ranking in paragraph 1, shall
be entitled to additional seats in proportion to their total number of votes until all the additional
seats are allocated.
4. Each party, organization, or coalition shall be entitled to not more than 3 seats.

What is the composition of the electoral tribunal (ET)?

A:
1. 3 Supreme Court Justices designated by the Chief Justice;
2. 6 members of the Chamber concerned (Senate or HoR) chosen on the basis of
proportional representation from the political parties and parties registered under the party-list
system (Sec. 17, Art. VI).

What is the composition of the Commission on Appointments (CA)?

A:
1. Senate President as ex-officio chairman
2. 12 Senators
3. 12 members of the HoR (Sec. 18, Art. VI)
What is the jurisdiction of the CA?
A: CA shall confirm the appointments by the President with respect to the following positions:
HAPCOO
1. Heads of the Executive departments. (except if it is the Vice-President who is appointed to
the post)
2. Ambassadors, other Public ministers or Consuls
3. Officers of the AFP from the rank of colonel or naval captain
4. Other officers whose appointments are vested in him by the Constitution (i.e. COMELEC
members) (Bautista v. Salonga, G.R. No. 86439, April 13, 1989)
What are the limitations on legislative investigation?
1. Under Sec. 21, Art. VI, the persons appearing in or affected by such legislative inquiries
shall be respected.
2. The Rules of procedures to be followed in such inquiries shall be published for the
guidance of those who will be summoned. This must be strictly followed so that the inquiries
are confined only to the legislative purpose. This is also to avoid abuses.
3. The investigation must be in aid of legislation.
4. Congress may not summon the President as witness or investigate the latter in view of the
doctrine of separation of powers except in impeachment cases.

Note: It is the Presidents prerogative to divulge or not the information which he deems
confidential or prudent in the public interest.
5. Congress may no longer punish the witness in contempt after its final adjournment. The
basis of the power to impose such penalty is the right to self-preservation. And such right is
enforceable only during the existence of the legislature (Lopez v. Delos Reyes, G.R. No. L3436,Nov. 5, 1930).
6. Congress may no longer inquire into the same justiciable controversy already before the
court (Bengzon v. Blue Ribbon Committee, G.R. No. 89914, Nov. 20, 1991).
What are the classifications of appropriations?
A:
1. General appropriation law passed annually, intended for the financial operations of the
entire government during one fiscal period;
2. Special appropriation law designed for a specific purpose

State the conditions under which, during a period of national emergency, Congress is
allowed to grant emergency powers to the President.
A: Under Sec. 23[2], Article VI of the Constitution, Congress may grant the President
emergency powers subject to the following conditions:
1. There is a war or other national emergency;
2. The grant of emergency powers must be for a limited period;
3. The grant of emergency powers is subject to such restrictions as Congress may prescribe;
and
4. The emergency powers must be exercised to carry out a national policy declared by
Congress
What are the grounds for impeachment?
A:
1. Culpable violation of the Constitution
2. Treason
3. Bribery
4. Graft and Corruption
5. Other high crimes
6. Betrayal of public trust (Sec. 2, Art. XI, 1987 Constitution)
Who are the impeachable officers?
A:
1. President
2. Vice-President
3. Members of the Supreme Court
4. Members of the Constitutional Commissions
5. Ombudsman
What is the salutary reason of confining only one impeachment proceeding in a year?
A: Justice Azcuna stated that the purpose of the one-year bar is two-fold:
1. To prevent undue or too frequent harassment
2. To allow the legislature to do its principal task of legislation. (Francisco v. House of Rep.,
G.R. No. 160261, Nov. 10, 2003)

What are the elements of command responsibility?

A: The elements are:
1. The existence of a superior-subordinate relationship between the accused as superior and
the perpetrator of the crime as his subordinate;
2. The superior knew or had reason to know that the crime was about to be or had been
committed;
3. The superior failed to take the necessary and reasonable measures to prevent the criminal
acts or punish the perpetrators thereof. (Rodriguez vs. GMA, et al., G.R. Nos. 191805
&193160, Nov. 15, 2011.)
What are the varieties of executive privilege?
A:
1. State secret privilege invoked by Presidents on the ground that the information is of such
nature that its disclosure would subvert crucial military or diplomatic objectives.
2. Informers privilege privilege of the government not to disclose the identity of persons
who furnish information in violations of law to officers charged with the enforcement of the
law.
3. Generic privilege for internal deliberations. Said to attach to intra-governmental
documents reflecting advisory opinions, recommendations and deliberations comprising part
of a process by which governmental decisions and policies are formulated.
What are the elements of presidential communications privilege?
A:
1. The protected communication must relate to a quintessential and non-delegable
presidential power.
2. The communication must be authored or solicited and received by a close advisor of the
President or the President himself. The judicial test is that an advisor must be in operational
proximity with the President.
3. The presidential communications privilege remains a qualified privilege that may be
overcome by a showing of adequate need, such that the information sought likely contains
important evidence and by the unavailability of the information elsewhere by an appropriate
investigating authority.
MILITARY POWERS ARTICLE VII, Sec 18
3 DISTINCT MILITARY POWERS OF THE PRESIDENT
(1) Calling out power as the Commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of the
Philippines
(2) Power to proclaim martial law
(3) Power to suspend the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus
INSTANCES WHEN THE PRESIDENT MAY CALL OUT AFP To
suppress
(1) lawless violence
(2) invasion
(3) rebellion
INSTANCES WHEN THE PRESIDENT MAY DECLARE MARTIAL LAW or
SUSPEND THE PRIVILEGE OF THE WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS
(1) invasion }
} when public safety requires it
(2) rebellion }

What are the kinds of Presidential Appointments?

A:
1. Appointments made by an Acting President
2. Midnight Appointment (Sec. 15, Art. VII)
3. Regular Presidential Appointments, with or without the confirmation by the CA
4. Ad-interim Appointments
What are four instances where confirmation of the Commission on Appointments is
required?
A:
1. Heads of executive departments
GR: Appointment of cabinet secretaries requires confirmation.
XPN: Vice-president may be appointed as a member of the Cabinet and such appointment
requires no confirmation. (Sec. 3(2), Art. VII)
2. Ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls those connected with the diplomatic
and consular services of the country.
3. Officers of AFP from the rank of colonel or naval captain
Note: PNP of equivalent ranks and the Philippine Coast Guard are not included.
4. Other officers of the government whose appointments are vested in the President in the
Constitution (Sec. 16, Art. VII), such as:
a. Chairmen and members of the CSC, COMELEC and COA (Sec. 1[2], Art. IX-B, C, D)
b. Regular members of the JBC (Sec. 8[2], Art. VIII)
What is the scope of the Presidents pardoning power? (Forms of executive clemency)
A: The President may grant the following: [Pa R C Re A]
1. Pardons (conditional or plenary)
2. Reprieves
3. Commutations
4. Remission of fines and forfeitures
5. Amnesty

What are the constitutional safeguards that guarantee independence of the judiciary?
A:
1. The SC is a constitutional body and may not be abolished by law
2. Members are only removable by impeachment (Sec. 2, Art. XI, 1987 Constitution)
3. The SC may not be deprived of its minimum and appellate jurisdiction; appellate
jurisdiction may not be increased without its advice or concurrence (Sec. 2, Art VIII, 1987
Constitution)
4. The SC has administrative supervision over all inferior courts and personnel (Sec. 6, Art.
VIII, 1987 Constitution)
5. The SC has exclusive power to discipline judges/justices of inferior courts (Sec, 22, Art.
VIII, 1987 Constitution)
6. The members of the judiciary enjoy security of tenure (Sec. 2 [2], Art. VIII, 1987
Constitution)
7. The members of the judiciary may not be designated to any agency performing quasijudicial or administrative functions (Sec 12, Article VIII, 1987 Constitution)

8. The salaries of judges may not be reduced; the judiciary enjoys fiscal autonomy (Sec. 3,
Art. VIII, 1987 Constitution)
9. The SC alone may initiate the promulgation of the Rules of Court (Sec. 5 (5), Art. 8, 1987
Constitution)
10. The SC alone may order temporary detail of judges (Sec. 5 (3), Art. 8, 1987 Constitution)
11. The SC can appoint all officials and employees of the Judiciary. (Sec. 5 (6), Art. 8, 1987
Constitution) (Nachura, Reviewer in Political Law, pp. 310-311)

What is the composition of the JBC?

A: The JBC is composed of:
1. Chief Justice, as ex-officio chairman
2. Secretary of Justice, as an ex-officio member
3. Representative of Congress, as an ex- officio member
4. Representative of the Integrated Bar
5. A professor of law
6. A retired member of the SC
7. Private sector representative
What are the THREE IMPORTANT FUNCTIONS OF THE COURT?
A. 1. Checking
2. Legitimizing
3. Symbolic

What are the cases that should be heard by the SC en banc?

A:
1. All cases involving the constitutionality of a treaty, international or executive agreement, or
law;
2. All cases which under the Rules of Court may be required to be heard en banc;
3. All cases involving the constitutionality, application or operation of presidential decrees,
proclamations, orders, instructions, ordinances, and other regulations;
4. Cases heard by a division when the required majority in the division is not obtained;
5. Cases where the SC modifies or reverses a doctrine or principle of law previously laid
either en banc or in division;
6. Administrative cases involving the discipline or dismissal of judges of lower courts;
7. Election contests for president or vice-president
What are the guarantees of independence provided for by the Constitution to the 3
Commissions?
A:
1. They are constitutionally-created; may not be abolished by statute
2. Each is conferred certain powers and functions which cannot be reduced by statute
3. Each is expressly described as independent
4. Chairmen and members are given fairly long term of office for 7 years
5. Chairmen and members cannot be removed except by impeachment
6. Chairmen and members may not be reappointed or appointed in an acting capacity

7. Salaries of chairmen and members are relatively high and may not be decreased during
continuance in office
8. Commissions enjoy fiscal autonomy
9. Each commission may promulgate its own procedural rules
10. Chairmen and members are subject to certain disqualifications calculated to strengthen
their integrity
11. Commissions may appoint their own officials and employees in accordance with Civil
Service Law

What are the requisites for a valid taking?

A: PMAPO
1. The expropriator must enter a Private property
2. Entry must be for more than a Momentary period
3. Entry must be under warrant or color of legal Authority
4. Property must be devoted to Public use or otherwise informally appropriated or injuriously
affected
5. Utilization of property must be in such a way as to Oust the owner and deprive him of
beneficial enjoyment of the property (Republic v. vda. De Castellvi, G.R. No. L-20620, Aug.
15, 1974)
What are the conditions before foreign military bases, troops, or facilities
may be allowed in the Philippines pursuant to ARTICLE XVIII, Sec. 25 of the
1987 Constitution?
A: Sec. 25, ARTICLE XVIII disallows foreign military bases, troops or
facilities in the country unless the following conditions are sufficiently met:
(a) it must be under a treaty;
(b) the treaty must be duly concurred in by the Senate and when so
required by Congress, ratified by a majority of the votes cast by the people in
a national referendum; and
(c) recognized as a treaty by the other contracting state
3 WAYS to ACQUIRE CITIZENSHIP
Under CA 63, Phil. citizenship may be
reacquired through:
1. direct act of Congress
2. naturalization
3. repatriation