this is our presentation in physical education

1. Group 1
Roles and Responsibilities of
the Philippine Congress

2. The Constitution is the fundamental law of
the land. It is the basis of all other laws. Our
constitution enumerates, defines and limits
powers of the three branches of the
government and prescribes the relationship
between the government and the governed.
It also provides the functions, roles and
responsibilities of the citizens and leaders
of the government in order to promote the
common good.

3. The Philippines has a democratic system of
government and it has three branches, namely,
the executive, legislative, and judicial branch.
the study of Philippine politics and governance
requires knowledge, understanding and critical
analysis of the Philippine government, its
dynamics, and how the people are affected by
and at the same time impact the nature of the
country’s political culture and government
structure.
(Politics and Governance, Sonia Daquila, p.95)

4. The legislative power of the government is
vested upon the Congress of the Philippines in
accordance with the 1987 Constitution. The
Congress is divided into two chambers: House
of Representatives (Lower House) and the
senate of the Philippines (Upper House) (Phil.
Politics and Governance, R.a. and Reidan
Pawilen, p. 56). The house of the Senate has 24
senators chosen nationwide by the electrorate.

5. The House of Representatives is composed of
not more than 250 members chosen from
legislative districts apportioned among
provinces, cities, and Metropolitan Manila area
in accordance with the number of the
respective inhabitants based on the uniform
and progressive ratio of representation (Art. VI,
Sec. 5), (Politics and Governance Sonia Daquila
p. 111);

6. Lawmakers in the House of representatives are
called Representatives or Members of the House
of Representatives. They are elected to a three-
year term by voters in their respective legislative
districts. A Representative can serve for not
more than three consecutive terms. There are
238 legeslative districts in the country. There are
238 representatives elected by district. In
addition, there are Representatives elected
through the patry-list system who constitute not
more than 20% of the total no. of

7. Lawmakers in the Senate are called Senators
who are elected at large or nationwide by
qualified voters to a sis-year term. Senator can
serve for not more than two consecutive terms.
The Senate has twenty-four (24) Senators.

8. To qualify for election as a Representative, you
have to be a natural-born citizen of the
Philippines, a registered voter in the district in
which you seek to be elected, a resident therein
for not less than 1 year before the day of the
election and at least 25 years of age. To qualify
for election as a Senator, you also have to be a
natural-born Filipino citizen, a registered voter, a
resident of the Philippines for at least 2 years
before the day of the election and at least 35
years old.

9. Our Constitution provides that our Congress
convenes for its regular session every year
beginning on the 4th Monday of July. A regular
session can last until thirty days before the
opening of its next regular session in the
succeeding year. The President may, however,
call special sessions which are usually held
between regular sessions to handle
emergencies or urgent matters.