POLITICAL LAW REVIEW ◦ ATTY.
BONG LOPEZ
EXECUTIVE POWER
 The power to enforce and administer the laws. It is
vested only in the President of the Philippines.
 The President of the Philippines is directly elected
by the people at large.
QUALIFICATIONS
1. Natural-born Citizen of the Philippines
2. Registered Voter
3. Able to read and write
4. 40 years of age on the day of the election
5. Resident of the Philippines for at least 10 years
immediately preceding the election.
REGULAR ELECTION AND TERM
 Term: 6 years
As for the President: he is not entitled for re-
election
As for the VP: he is limited to two successive terms
Voluntary renunciation of the office for any
length of time shall not be considered as an
interruption in the continuity of the service for
the full term for which he was elected.
No person who has succeeded the President
and has served as such for more than 4 years
shall be qualified for election to the same office
at any time.
 Beginning of the Term: noon of June 30 next
following the day of the election.
SPECIAL ELECTIONS
 If the vacancy occurs in the office of the President
and the VP more than 18 months before the date of
the next regular presidential election, a special
election to elect the President and VP shall be called
by the Congress.
 The Congress shall, at 10 am in the morning of the
3rd day after the vacancy, convene in accordance
with the rules w/o the need of a call and w/n 7
days, enact a law calling for a special election to be
held not earlier than 45 days nor later than 60 days
from the time of such call.
 The Constitution is silent as to whether the persons
so elected in the special election shall serve only for
the unexpired portion of the term, and whether the
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new President can run for re-election if he has not
served for more than 4 years.
NB: A special election may not be called on the basis of
a conditional resignation by the incumbent President.
CANVASSING OF ELECTION RETURNS
 Election Returns are certified by the board of
canvassers of each province or city
 Such returns shall be transmitted to the Congress,
directed to the President of the Senate.
 Not later than 30 days after the day of the election,
the Senate President, shall open all the certificates
in the Presence of the Senate and the HOR in a joint
public session, and after the Congress determines
the authenticity and due execution of the certificate
in the manner provided for by the law, canvass the
votes.
 In case of a tie, one of them shall be chosen by the
vote of a majority of all the Members of both
Houses of the Congress.
PRESIDENTIAL ELECTORAL TRIBUNAL
 Supreme Court – sitting en banc, shall be the sole
judge of all contests relating to the election,
returns, and qualifications of the President and VP.
OATH OF OFFICE
 Oath Taking – marks the formal induction of the
President into office.
NB: Even if the oath were not takes, the President like
any other officials would be equally liable for
misfeasance or nonfeasance of duty.
SUCCESSION
a. Vacancy in the Presidency before the beginning
of the Term
 The president may not be able to assume his post
because:
(a) He has not yet qualified; or
(b) He has not been chosen and has not yet
qualified
 Under these circumstances, the VP shall act as the
President until the President-elect shall have
qualified, or shall have been chosen and qualified
 If the President-elect dies, or becomes permanently
disabled at/or before the beginning of the term,
the VP-elect becomes the President.
 If both the President and the VP are not able to
assume their posts because of the same reasons,
the SENATE PRESIDENT, or in case of his inability,
THE HOUSE SPEAKER, shall act as the President
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until a President or a VP shall have been chosen
and qualified.
 In case the Senate President or House Speaker are
both unable to act as President, then the Congress
shall by law, provide for the manner of selecting
one who will act as the President until a President
shall have been either chosen or elected pursuant
to a special election and shall have qualified.
b. Permanent Vacancy in the Presidency during the
Term
 In the event of the President’s death, permanent
disability, removal from office, or resignation, the
VP shall become the President for the unexpired
portion of the term.
 In case of death, permanent disability, removal
from office, or resignation of both the President and
VP, the Senate President or, in case of his inability,
the Speaker of the House, shall act as the President
until the President or VP shall have been elected
pursuant to a special election and shall have
qualified.
 When the Acting President (Senate President or
House Speaker) dies, becomes permanently
disabled, or resigns, the Congress shall by law,
provide who shall be the Acting President until a
President or VP shall have been either chosen or
elected pursuant to a special election, and shall
have qualified.
Comparison of the rules on Vacancies
1. When vacancy occurs before the term, the
Constitution talks of the successor acting as
President until a President has been chosen and
qualified. If it occurs during the term, it talks of
elected and qualified.
2. During the term, the only way to fill up the vacancy
is by special election. Unlike when it is before the
term, it may be filled up by the vote of the Congress
in case of a tie.
3. If the vacancy occurs before the term, the grounds
are limited to: (1) death and (2) permanent
disability and the vacancy may be permanent or
temporary. If the vacancy occurs during the term,
additional grounds are added: (3) removal from
office and (4) resignation and the vacancy is
permanent.
TEMPORARY INABILITY OF THE PRESIDENT DURING
THE TERM – WAYS BY WHICH THE INABILITY MAY BE
MADE KNOWN OR DETERMINED
1. By a written declaration made by the president
himself as to his inability;
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2. By a written declaration by the Cabinet that the
President is unable to discharge the functions of his
office;
3. In the event of disagreement between the President
and the Cabinet, by a finding of Congress by 2/3
vote that the President is unable to discharge the
functions of his office.
NB: In all cases, the President takes a “leave of
absence” and the VP temporarily acts as the President.
SERIOUS ILLNESS OF THE PRESIDENT
 The public shall be informed of the state of his
health.
 The (1) Secretary of National Defense, (2) Secretary
of Foreign Affairs, (3) Chief of Staff, shall not be
denied access to the President during such illness.
VACANCY IN THE VICE-PRESIDENCY
 The successor is elected no more, but merely
chosen from the Congress by the President.
 The nominee shall become the VP upon
confirmation by a majority vote of all the Members
of both Houses, voting jointly.
REMOVAL BY IMPEACHMENT
1. Initiation Stage
 A verified complaint for the impeachment of the
President or VP is filed with the HOR on the
ground of either: (1) culpable violation of the
Constitution; (2) treason; (3) bribery; (4) graft and
corruption; (5) other high crimes; or (6) betrayal
of public trust.
 The complaint is included in the Order of Business
w/n 10 session days and referred to the
appropriate committee w/n 3 session days from
its inclusion.
 The committee hears and votes on the matter
and submits a report w/n 60 days from referral.
 The report or resolution of the committee is place
on the calendar of the plenary body w/n 10 days
from submission.
 A vote of 1/3 is needed to affirm a favorable
resolution or override a contrary resolution.
 The Articles of Impeachment will then be
forwarded to the Senate for trial.
2. Trial Stage
 The Senators take an oath or affirmation.
 The Chief Justice presides over the trial (only if
the President is the one under trial; if it is the VP
or any other impeachable officers, the Senate
President sits), but does not vote.
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 A vote of 16 (2/3 of all the members) is required
to convict the President or VP.
3. Post-Trial Stage
 If the Senate acquits the President, he shall
continue in office. No impeachment proceedings
can again be initiated against him w/n a period of
1 year.
 If the President is impeached, he shall be
removed from office at once, and shall be
disqualified to hold any office in the Republic.
 Criminal Charges may be filed against him for the
offenses for which he was impeached.
PRIVILEGES AND COMPENSATION
 The President shall have an official residence
 The President and VP shall receive compensation
fixed by law
 No increase or decrease in their compensation shall
take effect until the expiration of the their term
during which the increase was approved
NB: The President and VP shall not receive during their
tenure any other emolument from the Government or
any other source.
INHIBITIONS
 The President, VP, Members of the Cabinet and
their deputies and assistants are prohibited, during
their tenure, from holding any other office or
employment, practicing any profession,
participating, directly or indirectly, in any business
and being financially interested, directly or
indirectly in any contract with, or in any franchise,
or special privilege granted by the Government or
any subdivision, agency, or instrumentality thereof,
including GOCCs or their subsidiaries.
 The President can, however, assume a Cabinet post
because the departments are mere extensions of
his personality. (i.e. The President is the Chairman
of NEDA)
NB: The VP may be appointed to the Cabinet
w/o need of confirmation from the Commission
on Appointments.
 The President is prohibited from appointing his
spouse and relatives by consanguinity or affinity
w/n the 4th civil degree as members of the
ConComs, Office of the Ombudsman, Secretaries or
Usec. or Chairmen of heads of bureaus or offices,
including GOCCs.
THE CABINET
 This is not a constitutional body. It is a mere
creation of the President although its existence is
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recognized by the Constitution in several Articles
(i.e. The VP may be appointed as a member of the
Cabinet)
 The Cabinet holds a weekly regular meeting and
such special meetings as may be called by the
President.
 Being a mere creating of the President, the Cabinet
acts under the discretion of the President in the
latter’s exercise of his constitutional power of
control.
INSTANCES WHEN A CABINET MEMBER MAY HOLD
ANOTHER OFFICE
1. A specific provision in the constitution sanctions it.
i.e.
- The VP as member of the Cabinet
- The Secretary of Justice as an ex-officio member of
the JBC.
2. Such other office is necessitated by the primary
functions of his position.
i.e.
- Secretary of DTI is also the Chairman of the NDC
- Secretary of DAR is the Chairman of Land Bank
3. If it is allowed by law.
POWERS AND FUCNTIONS
A. EXECUTION OF LAWS
Executive Function – is the duty to implement the laws
within the standard imposed by the legislature.
NB: The President is not just the Chief Executive but
also the administrative head of the government. As
such, it is his duty to see that every government office is
managed and maintained properly by the persons in
charge of it, in accordance with pertinent laws and
regulations.
B. CONTROL OF EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENTS
 The President shall have control of all the executive
departments, bureaus and offices. (Art. VII, Sec. 17)
 The Control and Supervision of each department are
within their respective secretaries.
 Control – is the power to substitute one’s own
judgment for that of a subordinate.
 Doctrine of Qualified Political Agency – the different
executive departments are mere adjuncts of the
President. The secretaries are the alter-ego of the
President, men of his bosom confidence whom he has
designated to assist him in his otherwise physically
impossible multifarious functions.
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 The acts of the secretaries are presumptively the acts
of the President, until countermanded or reprobated
by him. The President may substitute his own will
over those of the secretaries, and they cannot
complain.
C. GENERAL SUPERVISION OF LOCAL GOVERNMENTS
AND AUTONOMOUS REGIONS
General Supervision – is the overseeing of subordinates
to make sure that they do their duties under the law.
This does not include the power to overrule their acts, if
these acts are within their discretion
Reason: autonomy of LGUs – there can be no real
autonomy while the national government controls the
local governments.
D. POWER OF APPOINTMENT
Appointment – is the act of designation by the
executive officer, board or body to whom that power
has been delegated, of the individual who is to exercise
the functions of a given office.
Presidential Appointments subject to the confirmation
by the Commission on Appointments:
1. Heads of Executive Departments
2. Ambassadors, other Public Ministers, and Consuls
3. Officers of the AFP with the rank of colonel or
naval captain
4. Other officers whose appointments are vested in
the President under the Constitution. This
includes:
a. Chairman and Members of the ConCom
b. Regular Members of the JBC: (1) IBP
representative; (2) a professor of law; (3) a
retired SC Justice; (4) a representative of the
private sector
Regular and Ad-Interim Appointments
 Regular Appointments – this is made while the
Congress is in session. It is not complete unless
confirmed by the Commission on Appointments.
Confirmation is needed before the appointee can
take his post.
 Ad-Interim or Recess Appointments – made during
the recess of the Congress. The appointee can take
his post right away. It is a complete and permanent
appointment that lasts until it is disapproved by the
Commission on Appointments, or until the next
adjournment of Congress, unless in the meantime
the Commission confirms it.
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The Appointing Process
 Nomination – the sole and voluntary act of the
President for you cannot compel him to make an
appointment or to appoint a particular person.
 Confirmation – the nomination is submitted to the
Commission on Appointments which meets only
when the Congress is in session.
 Commission – the issuance of the Commission is
done by the President alone. It is necessarily part
and parcel of the exercise of the appointing power
and serves as a conclusive evidence of the
appointment.
 Acceptance – for the appointee to have full
possession, enjoyment, and responsibility of an
office, it is necessary that the appointment be
accepted. (i.e. Taking the Oath of Office and
entering upon the exercise of the duties of the
office)
Presidential Appointments requiring nomination by
the JBC
1. Members of the SC and judges of all lower courts
 The President shall make an appointment w/n 90
days from the date of vacancy in the case of SC
 For judges of the lower courts, the appointment
must be made w/n 90 days from the date of the
receipt of the nominees
2. Ombudsman and his 5 deputies (Luzon, Visayas,
Mindanao, Over-All and Military)
 For the Ombudsman and his deputies, the
vacancies must be filled w/n 3 months after they
occur.
NB: The President shall appoint from a list of at least 3
nominees prepared by the JBC for every vacancy. Such
appointees need no confirmation.
Presidential Appointments made alone by the
President
1. Those vested by the Constitution in the President
alone like the appointment of the VP to the Cabinet
2. Those whose appointments are not otherwise
provided by law
3. Those whom he may be authorized by for law to
appoint
4. Those other officers lower in rank whose
appointment is vested by law in the President
Limitations on the appointing power of the President
1. Nepotism. The spouse and relatives by
consanguinity and affinity w/n the 4th civil degree of
the President shall not, during his tenure, be
appointed as members of the ConCom, the Office of
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the Ombudsman, or as Secretaries,
Undersecretaries, chairmen or heads of bureaus
and offices including GOCCs and their subsidiaries.
2. Midnight Appointments. 2 months immediately
before the next presidential elections, and up to the
end of his term, a President shall not make
appointments, except (1) temporary appointments
to the executive positions, (2) when continued
vacancies therein will prejudice public service or
endanger public safety.
Limitations on the appointing power of the Acting
President
1. Appointments extended by the acting president
shall remain effective unless revoked by the elected
president w/n 90 days from is assumption or re-
assumption of office
2. Midnight Appointments
E. THE REMOVAL POWER
 There is no express provision in the Constitution
granting the President of the Philippines the power
to remove executive offices from their posts.
However, he possesses it by implication from the
following:
(1) His power to appoint
(2) The Constitutional provision vesting the
executive power in the President
(3) His function to take care that the laws be
faithfully executed
(4) The President’s control over the administrative
departments, bureaus, and offices of the
government. Without the power to remove, it
would not be always possible for the President
to exercise his power of control.
 Not all officials appointed by the President may be
removed by him, namely:
(1) Members of the SC, the Ombudsman and his
deputies, and the members of the ConCom –
they have fixed tenure and are removed only by
impeachment.
(2) Judges of the Lower Courts – subject to the
disciplinary authority of the SC
F. THE PARDONING POWER
Object of Pardon: to afford relief from undue harshness
or evident mistake in the operation and enforcement of
the criminal law. The administration of justice by the
courts is not necessarily always wise or certainly
considered of circumstances which may properly
mitigate guilt.
AMPUAN, KEVIN JOHN D. (2014-0230)
Pardon: is an act of grace, proceeding from the power
entrusted with the execution of the laws which exempts
the individual on whom it is bestowed from the
punishment the law inflicts for a crime he has
committed; it is a remission of guilt.
Commutation: it is the substitution of a less for a
greater punishment, by authority of law, and may be
imposed on the convict w/o his acceptance and against
his consent. It is a remission of a part of the
punishment; substitutions of a less penalty for the one
originally imposed.
Reprieve (aka Respite): is the withholding of a sentence
for an interval of time, a postponement of execution, a
temporary suspension of execution. It does no more
than stay the execution of a sentence extended to a
prisoner to afford him an opportunity to procure some
amelioration of the sentence imposed.
Amnesty: is the sovereign act of granting oblivion or
general pardon for past acts, granted by the
government generally to a class of persons who are
subject to trial and have not been convicted, usually of
political offenses (treason, sedition, rebellion).
Probation: it involves a disposition under which a
defendant, after conviction and before serving
sentence, is released subject to conditions imposed by
the court and to the supervision of a probation officer.
Parole: the suspension of the sentence of a convict
granted after serving the minimum term of the
indeterminate sentence penalty, w/o granting pardon,
prescribing the terms upon which the sentence shall be
suspended and the convict temporarily released.
Limitations of the Pardoning Power:
1. A person who has been removed from office by way
of impeachment cannot be granted pardon.
However, after the officer impeached is subjected
to prosecution and convicted in an ordinary criminal
action, he can still be given a pardon for that
conviction.
2. No pardon, amnesty, parole, or suspension of
sentence for violation of election laws, rules, and
regulations shall be granted by the President w/o
favorable recommendation of the COMELEC.
3. The President shall also have the power to grant
amnesty with the concurrence of a majority of all
the members of the Congress.
4. The pardoning power can only be exercised after
conviction by final judgment.
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5. A person convicted of legislative contempt cannot

be granted pardon as this would violate the
separation of powers doctrine. However, is a person
is convicted under the RPC for disturbing a
parliamentary proceedings, he may be pardoned by
the President.
6. The civil liability of the convicted person may not be
the subject of pardon or remission since the same
pertains to the private offended party and does not
belong to the State.

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