CHAPTER 1
POLITICAL LAW the branch of public law which deals with the organization
and operations of the governmental organs of the State and defines the
relations of the State with the inhabitants of its territory
CHAPTER 2
THE CONSTITUTION OF THE PHILIPPINES
1987 Constitution fourth fundamental law to govern the Philippines
1935 Commonwealth Const adopted after proclamation of the
Republic
1973 Const enforced during Marcos regime under martial law
1986 Const/ Freedom Const result of people power upheaval
that deposed Pres Marcos and effective pending the adoption of
a permanent Constitution
1987 Const upheld through plebiscite ratified on February 2,
1987 with the campaign led by Pres. Aquino
CHAPTER 3
THE CONCEPT OF THE STATE
The STATE is a community of persons, more or less numerous,
permanently occupying a fixed territory, and possessed of an independent
government organized for political ends to which the great body of
inhabitants render habitual obedience.
ELEMENTS OF A STATE
1. People
Refers simply to the inhabitant of the State. There is no legal
requirement to their number but they must be numerous enough
to be self-sufficing and to defend themselves and small enough
to be easily administered and sustained.
2. Territory
Territory is the fixed portion of the surface of the earth inhabited
by the people of the State. It must be neither too big as to be
difficult to administer and defend nor too small as to be unable
to provide for the needs of the population.
Components of territory are the land mass (terrestrial domain),
the inland and external waters (maritime and fluvial domain) and
the air space above the land and waters (aerial domain).
ARTICLE I
NATIONAL TERRITORY
The national territory comprises the Philippines
archipelago, with all the islands and waters embraced therein,
and all other territories over which the Philippines has
sovereignty or jurisdiction, consisting of its terrestrial, fluvial, and
aerial domains, including its territorial sea, the seabed, the
subsoil, the insular shelves, and other submarine areas. The
waters around, between, and connecting the islands of the
archipelago, regardless of their breadth and dimensions, form
part of the internal waters of the Philippines.
BAR QUESTION: Distinguish: The territorial sea and the internal waters
of the Philippines.
SUGGESTED ANSWER: TERRITORIAL SEA is an adjacent belt of sea with
a breadth of 12 nautical miles measured from the baselines of a state
and over which the state has sovereignty. (Articles 2 and 3 of the
Convention on the Law of the Sea.) Ship of all states enjoy the right of
innocent passage through the territorial sea. (Article 14 of the
Convention on the Law of the Sea.)
Under Section 1, Article I of the 1987 Constitution, the INTERNAL
WATERS of the Philippines consist of the waters around, between and
connecting the islands of the Philippine Archipelago, regardless of their
breadth and dimensions, including the waters in bays, rivers and lakes.
No right of innocent passage for foreign vessels exists in the case of
internal waters. (Harris, Cases and Materials on International Law, 5th
ed., 1998, p. 407.) Internal waters are the waters on the landward side
of baselines from which the breadth of the territorial sea is calculated.
(Brownlie, Principles of Public International Law, 4th ed., 1990, p. 120.)
3. Government
Government is the agency or instrumentality through which the will of the
State is formulated, expressed and realized. No particular form of
government is prescribed, provided only that the government is able to
represent the State in its dealings with other States. Our Constitution,
however, requires our government to be democratic and republican.
A. FUNCTIONS
a.1. The Constituent
Constituent functions constitute the very bonds of society and are
therefore compulsory.
1. The keeping of order and providing for the protection of persons and
property from violence and robbery;
2. The fixing of the legal relations between husband and wife and
between parents and children;
3. The regulation of the holding, transmission and interchange of
property, and the determination of its liabilities for debt or for crime;
4. The determination of contractual rights between individuals;
5. The definition and punishment of crimes;
6. The administration of justice in civil cases;
7. The administration of political duties, privileges and relations of
citizens; and
8. The dealings of the State with foreign powers; the preservation of
the State from external danger or encroachment and the
advancement of its international interests.
b.2. The Ministrant
Ministrant functions are those undertaken to advance the general
interests of society, such as public works, public charity, and regulation
of trade and industry. These functions are merely optional.