Different concept of politics The cynic view of politics The fundamental political principles Political principles

2. POLITICAL DOGMA
BSAIS 2Y1-1

5. POLITICS
• involves making common decisions for a group
of people
•It is the activity by which differing interests
within a given unit of rule are conciliated by
giving them a share in power in proportion to
their importance to the welfare and survival of
the whole community.

6. DIFFERENT CONCEPTS OF
POLITICS
• Politics as the art of government
• Politics as public affairs
• Politics as compromise and
consensus
• Politics as power and the
distribution of resources.

7. • Politics as the art of government
• This is a state-centered view of politics.
- Politics is what governments or states do.
• It means that most people, most institutions
and most social activities can be regarded as
being outside politics.
• Businesses, schools and other educational
institutions, community groups, families and so
on are in this sense nonpolitical.

8. THE CYNIC VIEW OF POLITICS
• The implication of this state-centric
conception of politics is that politics is
thought of as a negative word.
•• It raises up images of trouble,
disruption and even violence on the
one hand, and deceit, manipulation
and lies on the other.

9. “One has to be a lowbrow, a bit of a
murderer, to be a politician, ready and
willing to see people sacrificed,
slaughtered, for the sake of an idea, whether
a good one or a bad one”.
- Henry Miller
“The more you read and observe about
this Politics thing, you got to admit that
each party is worse than the other. The
one that’s out always looks the best”.
- Will Rogers

10. • Politics as Public Affairs
• A second and broader conception of politics
moves beyond the narrow realm of government.
• Politics is thought of as public life or public
affairs.
• The distinction between the political and the
nonpolitical corresponds with the division
between an essentially public sphere of life and
what can be thought of as a private sphere.

12. “Man is by nature a political
animal”

15. • Politics as Compromise and
Consensus
• The third conception of politics relates to the way in which
decisions are made.
• Politics is seen as a particular means of resolving conflict:
that is, by compromise, conciliation and negotiation.
• Politics becomes the process of “conflict resolution.”
• In this view, the key to politics is a wide dispersal of power.
•Accepting that conflict is inevitable and social groups
possess and compete for power, they must be conciliated.

16. • Politics as power and the
distribution of resources
Politics as Power
• The fourth definition of politics is both the broadest and
the most radical.
• Rather than confining politics to a particular sphere; - this
view sees politics at work in all social activities and in every
corner of human existence.
• In this sense, politics takes place at every level of social
interaction.
•It can be found within families and amongst small groups
of friends just as much as amongst nations and on the
global stage.

17. • Politics as power and the
distribution of resources
Distribution of Power and Resources
• At its broadest, politics concerns the production, distribution and use
of resources in the course of social existence.
• At its broadest, politics concerns the production, distribution and use
of resources in the course of social existence.
• Politics is, in essence, power: the ability to achieve a desired outcome,
through whatever means.
• From this perspective, politics is about diversity and conflict.• The
essential ingredient is the existence of scarcity.
• Politics can therefore be seen as a struggle over scarce resources, and
power can be seen as the means through which this struggle is
conducted.

18. The Fundamental Political
Principles

19. Consent of the Governed
• The people are the source of all power.
• The government can only rule with their
permission
• The citizens give their consent when they vote.

20. Rule of Law
• Everybody MUST obey the law. This includes
elected officials and Regular citizens

21. Limited Government
• The government is not all powerful.
• It can only do the things that the people allow it
to do.

22. Limited Government
• The government is not all powerful.
• It can only do the things that the people allow it
to do.

23. Political Principles
Democracy — A free society depends on a free media and
organizes civic, social, and economic life using the principles
of participatory democracy arising from direct action and
public accountability. Those affected by a decision have an
opportunity to participate in that decision.
Equality — All people are welcomed as part of a free society.
All people are equal and all labor is valued equally.
Diversity — All people in a free society are different, and
space for their difference is paramount to their equality.

24. Political Principles
Security — Every human in a free society has secure access
to meet their basic needs of food, shelter, health care,
information, education, and transportation.
Creativity — A free society values culture, art, and leisure as
fundamental needs. Every person has the right to their own
culture and to practice creative expression.
Self-Determination — A free society is decentralized and all
localities are autonomous and self-determined so long as
they do not infringe upon the other basic principles of a free
society.

25. Political Principles
Interdependence — Communities in a free society are dependent
on one another through mutual aid and exchange.
Justice — All people have the right to be free from coercion, threat,
and violence. A justice system should reside in the community it
affects, seek resolution rather than revenge, and should work
towards abolition of authoritarian prisons and jails.
Peace — A free society uses conflict as an opportunity to learn from
divergent views, opinions and experiences, with the goal of crafting
agreements and taking actions that affirm the humanity and basic
rights of all parties.

26. Political Principles
Ecology — Humans live in balance with, and are part of, the
natural world. A free society recognizes the right to clean
water, clean air and food free of industrial toxins and genetic
engineering.
Economy — In a free society the means of production should
be placed in the hands of the people, empowering
communities to organize meaningful employment, and
provide a responsible and sustainable standard of living which
tries to meet the needs of all people.

27. How the Philippine Government is
Organized
The Philippines is a republic with a presidential
form of government wherein power is equally
divided among its three branches: executive,
legislative, and judicial.

29. One basic corollary in a presidential system of government is the principle of
separation of powers wherein legislation belongs to Congress, execution to the
Executive, and settlement of legal controversies to the Judiciary.
• The Legislative branch is authorized to make laws, alter, and repeal them
through the power vested in the Philippine Congress. This institution is
divided into the Senate and the House of Representatives.
• The Executive branch carries out laws. It is composed of the President
and the Vice President who are elected by direct popular vote and serve
a term of six years. The Constitution grants the President authority to
appoint his Cabinet. These departments form a large portion of the
country’s bureaucracy.

30. • The Judicial branch evaluates laws. It holds the power to settle controversies
involving rights that are legally demandable and enforceable. This branch
determines whether or not there has been a grave abuse of discretion
amounting to lack or excess of jurisdiction on the part and instrumentality of
the government. It is made up of a Supreme Court and lower courts.

31. Each branch of government can change
acts of the other branches as follows:
•The President can veto laws passed by Congress.
•Congress confirms or rejects the President's
appointments and can remove the President from
office in exceptional circumstances.
•The Justices of the Supreme Court, who can
overturn unconstitutional laws, are appointed by
the President and confirmed by the Senate.

32. The Philippine government seeks to act in the best
interests of its citizens through this system of checks and
balances.
The Constitution expressly grants the Supreme Court the
power of Judicial Review as the power to declare a treaty,
international or executive agreement, law, presidential
decree, proclamation, order, instruction, ordinance or
regulation unconstitutional.

33. Legislative Department
The Legislative Branch enacts legislation, confirms or
rejects Presidential appointments, and has the
authority to declare war. This branch includes
Congress (the Senate and House of Representatives)
and several agencies that provide support services to
Congress.
•Senate – The Senate shall be composed of twenty-
four Senators who shall be elected at large by the
qualified voters of the Philippines, as may be
provided by law.

34. •House of Representatives – The House of Representatives
shall be composed of not more than two hundred and fifty
members, unless otherwise fixed by law, who shall be
elected from legislative districts apportioned among the
provinces, cities, and the Metropolitan Manila area in
accordance with the number of their respective inhabitants,
and on the basis of a uniform and progressive ratio, and
those who, as provided by law, shall be elected through a
party-list system of registered national, regional, and sectoral
parties or organizations.

35. The party-list representatives shall constitute twenty per
cent of the total number of representatives including those
under the party list. For three consecutive terms after the
ratification of this Constitution, one-half of the seats allocated
to party-list representatives shall be filled, as provided by law,
by selection or election from the labor, peasant, urban poor,
indigenous cultural communities, women, youth, and such
other sectors as may be provided by law, except the religious
sector.

36. Executive Department
The executive branch carries out and enforces laws. It includes the President, Vice
President, the Cabinet, executive departments, independent agencies, and other
boards, commissions, and committees.
Key roles of the executive branch include:
• President – The President leads the country. He/she is the head of state, leader of
the national government, and Commander in Chief of all armed forces of the
Philippines. The President serves a six-year term and cannot be re-elected.
• Vice President – The Vice President supports the President. If the President is unable
to serve, the Vice President becomes President. He/she serves a six-year term.
• The Cabinet – Cabinet members serve as advisors to the President. They include the
Vice President and the heads of executive departments. Cabinet members are
nominated by the President and must be confirmed by the Commission of
Appointments.

37. Judicial Department
The judicial branch interprets the meaning of laws, applies laws to individual
cases, and decides if laws violate the Constitution. The judicial power shall be
vested in one Supreme Court and in such lower courts as may be established by
law.
Judicial power includes the duty of the courts of justice to settle actual
controversies involving rights which are legally demandable and enforceable,
and to determine whether or not there has been a grave abuse of discretion
amounting to lack or excess of jurisdiction on the part of any branch or
instrumentality of the Government. The judicial branch interprets the meaning
of laws, applies laws to individual cases, and decides if laws violate the
Constitution.