The Philippine Constitutional Convention of 1971 was called to change the 1935 Constitution of the Philippines. The delegates were elected on November 10, 1970, and the convention itself was convened on June 1, 1971. It was marked by controversies, including efforts to uphold term limits for incumbent President Ferdinand Marcos, and a bribery scandal in which 14 people, including First Lady Imelda Marcos, were accused of bribing delegates to favor the Marcoses.
Marcos declared martial law in September 1972, and had 11 opposition delegates arrested. The remaining opposition delegates were forced to go either into exile or hiding. Within two months, an entirely new draft of the constitution was created from scratch by a special committee. The 1973 constitutional plebiscite was called to ratify the new constitution, but the validity of the ratification was brought to question because Marcos replaced the method of voting through secret ballot with a system of viva voce voting by "citizens' assemblies". The ratification of the constitution was challenged in what came to be known as the Ratification Cases.
By the middle of the 1930s, the end of the American occupation of the Philippines was supposed to be in sight. In 1934 the US had approved a ten-year plan for the Philippines' transition from a commonwealth to a fully independent nation-state, based on the Jones Act of 1916. One of the preconditions for this independence was the creation of "a stable democratic government" based on the American model of governance, rather than being based on the French model as the Malolos Constitution had been. [1]
Although World War II interfered with the transition plan and a puppet constitution was put in place by the Japanese Imperial Army from 1943 until the defeat of the Japanese forces in 1944, the Philippines was granted independence on July 4, 1946. Upon independence, the 1935 constitution came into effect, featuring a government structure very similar to that of the United States: an executive branch with a President who could be elected to a maximum of two four-year terms; a bicameral legislature consisting of a congress and a senate; and an independent judicial branch. [1]
In 1967, the executive branch was headed by the tenth president, Ferdinand Marcos. Expressing opposition to the administration's policies and citing rising discontent over wide inequalities in society, [2] critics of Marcos began campaigning to change a constitution which they said had been written under the dominion of the country's former colonial overlords. [3] On March 16 of that year, the Philippine Congress constituted itself into a Constituent Assembly and passed Resolution No. 2, which called for a Constitutional Convention to change the 1935 Constitution. [4]
Marcos surprised his critics by endorsing the move, and it was later revealed that the resulting Constitutional Convention would lay the foundation for the legal justifications Marcos would use to extend his term past the two four-year terms allowable under the 1935 Constitution. [2]
A special election was held on November 10, 1970, to elect the delegates of the convention. [2] : "130" Once the winners had been determined, the convention was convened on June 1, 1971, at the Manila Hotel [5] and was later transferred in 1972 to the then-newly completed Quezon City Hall. [6]
Former Philippine President Carlos P. Garcia was sworn in as the President of the Constitutional Convention on the day the convention was convened, but died thirteen days after taking oath. Former President Diosdado Macapagal replaced Garcia. [7] Sotero H. Laurel served as the President Pro-Tempore of the convention. [8]
A total of 320 delegates were elected to the convention, the most prominent being former senators Raul Manglapus and Roseller T. Lim. Other delegates would become influential political figures, including Hilario Davide, Jr., Marcelo Fernan, Sotero Laurel, Aquilino Pimentel, Jr., Teofisto Guingona, Jr., Raul Roco, Edgardo Angara, Richard Gordon, Margarito Teves, and Federico Dela Plana. [2] [8]
Province | District | Delegates [8] |
---|---|---|
Abra | Lone District | Arturo V. Barbero Loreto L. Seares |
Agusan del Norte | Lone District | Edelmiro A. Amante Antonio R. Tupaz |
Agusan del Sur | Lone District | Lamberto M. Mordeno Vicente M. Guzman |
Aklan | Lone District | Augusto B. Legaspi Godofredo P. Ramos |
Albay | First District | Jose A. Madrilejos, Jr. Salvador C. Balane |
Second District | Domingo R. Imperial, Jr. Julian J. Locsin | |
Third District | Efren R. Sarte Teresita D. Flores | |
Antique | Lone District | Angel Salazar, Jr. Arturo F. Pacificador |
Bataan | Lone District | Jose R. Nuguid Armando L. Abad, Sr. |
Batanes | Lone District | Custodio A. Villalva Geronimo M. Cabal |
Batangas | First District | Felixberto M. Serrano Antonio de las Alas |
Second District | Honesto Mendoza Jose P. Leviste, Jr. Antonio C. Alano | |
Third District | Sotero H. Laurel Artemio M. Lobrin Oscar L. Leviste | |
Benguet | Lone District | Floro R. Bugnosen Fernando Bautista |
Bohol | First District | Natalio R. Castillo, Jr. Victor de la Serna |
Second District | Teogenes Borja Jose S. Zafra | |
Third District | Carlos P. Garcia Simplico M. Apalisok | |
Bukidnon | Lone District | Dante Sarraga Luis R. Lorenzo Alfredo J. Lagamon |
Bulacan | First District | Pablo S. Trillana III Dakila F. Castro Mateo A. T. Caparas |
Second District | Manuel C. Cruz Justino P. Hermoso Cesar B. Serapio Magtanggol C. Guinigundo | |
Cagayan | First District | Manuel T. Molina Jose T. Antonio Pedro N. Laggui |
Second District | Leoncio M. Puzon Oscar L. Lazo | |
Camarines Norte | First District | Rogelio E. Panotes Fernando S. Vinzons |
Camarines Sur | First District | Raul S. Roco Ramon A. Diaz Antonio M. Sison |
Second District | Edmundo C. Cea Domingo M. Guevarra Eddie P. Alanis Lilia B. de Lima Felix R. Alfelor, Jr. | |
Camiguin | Lone District | Pedro P. Romualdo Antonio V. Borromeo |
Catanduanes | Lone District | Clemente A. Abundo Rafael P. Santelices |
Capiz | First District | Enrique M. Belo George H. Viterbo |
Second District | Dandy K. Tupaz Pedro G. Exmundo | |
Cavite | Lone District | Juanito R. Remulla Abraham F. Sarmiento Jose P. Santillan Alberto Jamir |
Cebu | First District | Lydia D. Rodriguez Casimiro R. Madarang, Jr. |
Second District | Pedro L. Yap Marcelo B. Fernan Natalio B. Bacalso Jesus P. Garcia | |
Third District | Napoleon G. Rama Antonio T. Bacaltos | |
Fourth District | Oliveros E. Kintanar Hilario G. Davide, Jr. | |
Fifth District | Jorge Kintanar Pedro B. Calderon | |
Sixth District | Andres R. Flores Francis M. Zosa | |
Seventh District | Antionio Y. de Pio Gerardo M. S. Pepito | |
Cotabato | Lone District | Midpantao L. Adil Linda U. Ampatuan Anacleto D. Badoy, Jr. Macario C. Camelo Jose M. Estaniel Michael O. Mastura Sandiale A. Sambalawan Duma D. Sinsuat Sergio F. Tocao Antionio R. Velasco |
Davao del Norte | Lone District | Camilio L. Sabio Gaudioso R. Buen Lauro C. Arabejo Ramon A. Tirol |
Davao del Sur | Lone District | Ismael I. Veloso Leon M. Garcia, Jr. Pedro S. Castillo Dominador F. Carillo Samuel C. Occeña Jesus V. Matas |
Davao Oriental | Lone District | Adolfo A. Angala Antonio D. Olmedo |
Eastern Samar | Lone District | Jaime C. Opinion Generoso A. Juaban |
Ifugao | Lone District | Gaspar R. Ponchinlam Raymundo Baguilat |
Ilocos Norte | First District | Antonio V. Raquiza Federico B. Ablan, Sr. |
Second District | Gregorio R. Paruganan Emerito M. Salva | |
Ilocos Sur | First District | Ramon S. Encarnacion Melchor G. Padua, Jr. |
Second District | Godofredo S. Reyes Eduardo Guirnalda | |
Iloilo | First District | Salvador B. Britanico Lourdes S. Trono |
Second District | Emilio M. de la Cruz II Oscar Ledesma | |
Third District | Manuel C. Locsin Amanio Sorongon | |
Fourth District | Ramon A. Gonzales Licurgo T. Tirador | |
Fifth District | Sonia S. Aldeguer Juan V. Borra | |
Isabela | Lone District | Benjamin C. Reyes Heherson T. Alvarez Francisco B. Albano, Jr. Leocadio E. Ignacio Celso D. Gangan |
Kalinga-Apayao | Lone District | Infante S. Calaycay Eubulo G. Verzola |
Laguna | First District | Jose A. Yulo, Jr. Manuel A. Concordia Amado G. Garcia Vicente G. Hocson |
Second District | Estanislao A. Fernandez Rustico F. de los Reyes | |
Lanao del Norte | Lone District | Mariano Ll. Badelles Luis Quibranza Francisco L. Abalos |
Lanao del Sur | Lone District | Ahmed Domocao Alonto Mangontawar B. Guro Lininding P. Pangandaman Oga M. Mapupuno Pangalian M. Balindong Tocod M. Macaraya |
La Union | First District | Victor F. Ortega Pedro O. Valdez |
Second District | Antonio M. de Guzman | |
Leyte | First District | Cirilo Roy Montejo Eduardo Quintero |
Second District | Damian V. Aldaba Francisco A. Astilla | |
Third District | Ramon V. Salazar Antero M. Bongbong | |
Fourth District | Domingo Veloso Flor L. Sagadal | |
Manila | First District | Reynaldo T. Fajardo Salvador L. Mariño Fidel A. Santiago |
Second District | Roberto S. Oca Juan T. David | |
Third District | Gerardo S. Espina Eduardo M. Sison Feliciano Jover Ledesma | |
Fourth District | Carlos J. Valdez Jose P. Marcelo Antonio S. Araneta, Jr. | |
Marinduque | Lone District | Carmencita O. Reyes Ricardo G. Nepomuceno |
Masbate | Lone District | Andres C. Clemente, Jr. Raul R. Estrella Mateo A. Esparrago, Jr. Venancio L. Yaneza |
Mountain Province | Lone District | Willian Claver Felix Diaz |
Northern Samar | Lone District | Emil L. Ong Cesar A. Sevilla |
Nueva Ecija | First District | Romeo T. Capulong Rebeck A. Espiritu Ernesto R. Rondon |
Second District | Juan R. Liwag Emmanuel T. Santos Sedfrey A. Ordoñez Raymundo A. Padiernos | |
Nueva Vizcaya | Lone District | Jose D. Calderon Demetrio A. Quirino, Jr. |
Occidental Mindoro | Lone District | Ricardo V. Quintos Honofre Restor |
Oriental Mindoro | Lone District | Jose A. Leido Juan Luces A. Luna Amado S. Tolentino, Jr. |
Occidental Misamis | Lone District | Timoteo C. Ruben Julio H. Osamis Elizabeth C. Johnston |
Oriental Misamis | Lone District | Aquilino Pimentel, Jr. Rolando C. Piit Felino Neri Pablo S. Reyes |
Occidental Negros | First District | Carlos Ledesma Rodolfo Gamboa Benito Montinola, Sr. Emmanuel G. Aguilar Ramon Hortinela, Jr. Romeo C. Gonzaga |
Second District | Arsenio B. Yulo, Jr. Carlos Hilado Loreto V. Valera | |
Third District | Gregorio Tingson Plaridel G. Villadelgado Jacinto Montilla Juan G. Yulo | |
Oriental Negros | First District | Margarito Teves Gonzalo O. Catan, Jr. Vicente G. Sinco Cicero D. Calderon |
Second District | Emilio C. Macias II Felix G. Gaudiel, Sr. | |
Palawan | Lone District | Alfredo E. Abueg, Jr. Jose N. Nolledo |
Pampanga | First District | Diosdado P. Macapagal Amado M. Yuzon Jose E. Suarez Fidel U. Canilao |
Second District | Amelito R. Mutuc Ricardo M. Sagmit Bren Z. Guiao | |
Pangasinan | First District | Mauro Baradi Jose F. S. Bengson, Jr. |
Second District | Luis C. Catubig Numeriano G. Tanopo, Jr. | |
Third District | Ricardo B. Primicias Emiliano L. Abalos | |
Fourth District | Reynaldo A. Villar Jose M. Aruego | |
Fifth District | Felix M. Mamenta, Jr. Jesus M. Reyes | |
Quezon | First District | Rodolfo D. Robles Edgardo J. Angara Vincent L. Recto Leandro P. Garcia |
Second District | Gil G. Puyat, Jr. Cesar A. Caliwara Oscar F. Santos Benjamin M. Campomanes | |
Rizal | First District | Raul S. Manglapus Jesus G. Barrera Voltaire R. Garcia Salvador Z. Araneta Jose Concepcion, Jr. Jose Mari U. Velez Jose Y. Feria Augusto T. Kalaw Jose Ma. V. Paredes Miguel P. Cuaderno Sr. Teofisto T. Guingona, Jr. Leonardo Siguion Reyna Ceferino P. Padua Alejandro A. Lichauco Tomas C. Benitez Mary Rose J. Ezpeleta Augusto Caesar Espiritu Augusto L. Syjuco, Jr. |
Second District | Pacifico A. Ortiz Gilberto M. Duavit Emilio de la Paz, Jr. Francisco Sumulong Augusto Sanchez | |
Romblon | Lone District | Manuel F. Martinez Ernesto G. Ang |
Samar | Lone District | Decoroso Rosales Romualdo R. Mendiola Ramon V. Mijares Valeriano C. Yancha |
Sorsogon | First District | Pacifico F. Lim Bonifacio H. Gillego |
Second District | Jose L. Lachica Celso P. Tabuena | |
South Cotabato | Lone District | Rodolfo A. Ortiz Tomas T. Falgui Fidel P. Purisima Arturo P. Pingoy |
Southern Leyte | Lone District | Gabriel O. Yñiguez Federico U. de la Plana |
Sulu | Lone District | Jal M. Anni Tating Sangkula Benjamin Abubakar |
Surigao del Norte | Lone District | Constantino M. Navarro, Jr. Fanny C. Garcia |
Surigao del Sur | Lone District | Vicente L. Pimentel Eriberto B. Misa |
Tarlac | First District | Mercedes C. Teodoro Homobono C. Sawit |
Second District | Jose Y. Feliciano Ramon M. Nisce | |
Zambales | Lone District | Richard J. Gordon Enrique J. Corpus Luis D. Santos |
Zamboanga del Norte | Lone District | Augusto C. Saguin Adolfo S. Azcuna Ernesto S. Amatong |
Zamboanga del Sur | Lone District | Vincenzo A. Sagun Roseller T. Lim Wilfredo G. Cainglet Antonio M. Ceniza Maria Clara L. Lobregat Teodoro C. Araneta Pedro M. Rodriguez, Jr. Ramon V. Blancia Benjamin A. Rodriguez |
Even as far back as 1967, when the creation of the Constitutional Convention was proposed, opposition politicians feared that Marcos would use the convention as a way to stay in power beyond the two four-year terms allowed him by the 1935 Constitution. Because of these fears, the original resolution in congress which called for the convention had a provision that would have required the proposed new Constitution to have a provision preventing Marcos or his wife Imelda from running for office after the end of his term in 1973. [2] : "132" The provision was defeated in Congress by a narrow vote. [2]
Members of the opposition who were elected as Constitutional Convention delegates nevertheless proposed such "Ban the Marcoses" provisions during the deliberations of the convention. [2]
Soon after the Constitutional Convention was convened, 176 of the 206 delegates signed a resolution by delegate Napoleon Rama calling for a ban on the Marcoses. Later, the Committee on Suffrage and Election Reforms, chaired by Raul Manglapus, drafted a resolution [2] which read:
No person who has served as President of the Philippines shall be eligible to occupy the same office or that of chief minister or chief executive any time in the future, nor shall his spouse or relatives to the second degree by consanguinity or affinity be eligible to occupy the same office during any unexpired portion of his term or in one immediately succeeding term. [2]
Deliberations on these provisions dragged out due to partisan rambling, continuing until Marcos' declaration of martial law in September 1972. [2] Rama was put in jail along with 10 other members of the opposition bloc, while numerous others, including Manglapus, were forced into hiding or exile. They were dropped from the Marcos-sponsored final draft of the constitution which was approved by the convention in November 1972. [2] [9]
Already bogged down by politicking and delays, the credibility of the 1971 Constitutional Convention took a severe blow in May 1972 when a delegate exposed a bribery scheme in which delegates were paid to vote in favor of the Marcoses – with First Lady Imelda Marcos herself implicated in the alleged payola scheme. [2] : "133" [10]
Ever since the convention was convened, the "progressive bloc" of the convention believed that Marcos was influencing the proceedings through the votes of delegates allied to the Marcoses and Imelda's family, the Romualdezes. [2] This suspicion was further strengthened on May 19, 1972, when Eduardo Quintero – a former Ambassador to the United Nations and the elected Constitutional Convention delegate for Leyte's first district – alleged that some of the delegates, including himself, had been receiving money from a "Money Lobby" in the convention. In his speech on the plenary, Quintero accused fellow delegates that were for the moment unnamed of bribing him P11,150 to vote in support of provisions that would prolong the political career of the Marcoses and against those that would hamper it. [10] The major provisions that would have greatly impacted the political surivival of the Marcos family were the proposals to a shift to parliamentarianism which would have enabled President Marcos to run as Prime Minister unhampered by the term limits set in the presidential system of the 1935 constitution as well as the "Ban Marcos" provisions of Napoleon Rama. Quintero himself was politically indebted to the Marcoses because he was elected with the aid of Imelda Marcos' brother, but he said that he finally wanted "to do the correct thing". [10] [11]
Quintero eventually released a three-page sworn statement that named 14 persons involved in the bribery scheme. The list included 12 of Quintero's fellow Convention delegates, the wife of delegate Artemio Mate, and Imelda Marcos. [12]
The exposé tainted the convention, angered the anti-Marcos opposition, and scandalized the country. Manila drivers plastered signs reading "Mabuhay Quintero!" ("Long Live Quintero!") on the sides of their cars in the days after Quintero's exposé. [2] Later historians [2] note that this would have jeopardized any efforts on Marcos' part to hold on to power beyond the two four-year terms allowed him by the 1935 Constitution, but the social unrest brought about by Marcos' 1970 debt crisis enabled him to stay in power anyway – by declaring martial law. [2]
On September 18, 1972, the convention was targeted by one of the last 1972 Manila bombings – about 20 explosions in various locations in Metro Manila in the months after the Plaza Miranda bombing and immediately preceding Marcos' declaration of martial law. [6] [2]
The work of the convention was affected by the declaration of martial law in September 1972 by President Marcos. The military units assigned to implement the law were given a list of 400 individuals to arrest, consisting mostly of outspoken critics of Marcos' administration. This included a number of members of the Constitutional Convention. [2]
Some of the individuals on the list, such as Raul Manglapus, [13] were either not in the Philippines when martial law was declared, while some, such as Raul Roco, were in the country but managed to evade arrest. [9] However, numerous members of the Constitutional Convention's opposition bloc were among those arrested in the early hours of September 22, 1972. [2] : "157" [14] [15] [16] Convention delegates immediately arrested after the proclamation of martial law included: [9] : 37
As recounted by oppositionist Convention delegate Caesar Espiritu, officials privy to variations of the priority arrest list eventually informed them which other Convention delegates had been put on the list. Aside from those actually arrested, one "shortlist" of 12 delegates identified six other delegates: Sonny Alvarez, Antonio "Tonypet" Araneta, Romy Capulong, Boni Gillego, Raul Manglapus, and Raul Roco. (Among those actually arrested, this list named Garcia, Guiao, Lichauco, Rama, Rondon, and Velez.) [9] : 39
The longest list the convention delegates were able to piece together listed a total of 32 delegates, identifying Bacalzo, Guingona, Concepcion, Nolledo, and Viterbo who were all arrested, and additionally mentioned "Delima (the only girl), Occeña, Badoy, Sanchez, the Espiritu brothers, Pepe Calderon, Kalaw, Father Ortiz, and Amatong". [9] : 39
With nearly a dozen of its members in jail and some of its most prominent leaders overseas or in hiding, the "progressive faction" of the convention which spoke against Marcos was no longer able to contribute to the discussion. [2]
In contrast to the slow, contentious deliberations that marked its early days, the Convention moved quickly after Marcos had declared martial law. The opposition bloc had effectively been decimated and the threat of imprisonment hung over any delegates who might voice opposition in the convention. Macapagal thus allowed the regular rules of the convention to be suspended so that a 166-member group headed by Marcos-supporting delegate Gilberto Duavit came up with a new draft of the Constitution. [16]
By November 29, 1972, a little over two months after the declaration of martial law, the Convention approved the draft, with Macapagal "reluctantly putting his signature" on a document that would give so much power to Marcos. [9] It was presented to Marcos at the Malacañang palace on December 1, 1972, marking the end of the Constitutional Convention's task. [16]
On January 5, 1973, Marcos, who had seized legislative power as part of his declaration of martial law, issued Presidential Decree No. 86-A, an addendum to the Revised Barrio Charter (Presidential Decree No. 86) which he had signed in late December to reconstitute Philippine barrios (villages) into a new structure called a "barangay". [17] Presidential Decree No. 86-A cancelled the election plebiscite in which Philippine citizens would have voted whether or not to ratify the new Constitution. Instead, the 1973 Constitution would be ratified using "Citizen's Assemblies". [18]
The Constitution was supposedly presented for the people's ratification in the 1973 constitutional plebiscite, [2] where the Citizen's Assemblies supposedly showed their assent through viva voce votation. [19] : 213 Due to the lack of reportage accompanying the gagging of the Philippine press during martial law, there are no reliable records of how many citizens actually participated in these assemblies. [2] The results of the plebiscite were thus questioned before the Philippine Supreme Court in what came to be known as the Plebiscite Cases (Planas v. COMELEC (1973)), and the legality of the 1973 Constitution questioned in what came to be known as the Ratification Cases (Javellana v. Executive Secretary). [20] [21]
In the Ratification Cases, six of the 10 members of the court (the Chief Justice, and Justices Makalintal, Zaldivar, Castro, Fernando, and Teehankee) said that the 1973 Constitution had not been ratified validly. But Justices Makalintal and Castro said that the people had acquiesced to the 1973 Constitution whether or not the ratification was valid, saying that the question of whether the Constitution could be invalidated was a political determination and not a judicial one. The Constitution was thus effectively upheld. [20] [21]
Marcos would continue to rule as a dictator until being ousted by the People Power Revolution in 1986. [2]
Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos Sr. was a Filipino politician, dictator and kleptocrat who served as the tenth president of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. Marcos ruled the country under martial law from 1972 to 1981, and with vastly expanded powers under the 1973 Constitution until he was deposed by a nonviolent revolution in 1986. Marcos described his rule's philosophy as "constitutional authoritarianism" under his Kilusang Bagong Lipunan. One of the most controversial figures in Filipino history, Marcos's regime was infamous for its corruption, extravagance, and brutality.
The People Power Revolution, also known as the EDSA Revolution or the February Revolution, was a series of popular demonstrations in the Philippines, mostly in Metro Manila, from February 22 to 25, 1986. There was a sustained campaign of civil resistance against regime violence and electoral fraud. The nonviolent revolution led to the departure of Ferdinand Marcos, the end of his 20-year dictatorship and the restoration of democracy in the Philippines.
Raul Sevilla Manglapus was a prominent post–World War II Filipino politician and songwriter. He co-founded the reformist Progressive Party of the Philippines and the Christian Democratic Socialist Movement in 1968.
A parliamentary election was held in the Philippines on April 7, 1978, for the election of the 165 regional representatives to the Interim Batasang Pambansa. The leading opposition party, the Lakas ng Bayan (LABAN), ran twenty-one candidates for the Metro Manila area. Their leading candidate was the jailed opposition leader Ninoy Aquino. Marcos regime's party known as the Kilusang Bagong Lipunan (KBL), which was led by the then-First Lady Imelda Marcos. Ninoy was allowed to run by his fellow partymates under the Liberal Party, who boycotted the election and was not allowed to campaign, and so his family campaigned for him. The night before the election on April 6, 1978, a noise barrage was organized by the supporters of (LABAN) which occurred up to dawn.
A constitutional convention was called to change the 1935 Constitution of the Philippines, written to establish the Commonwealth of the Philippines. A special election was held on November 10, 1970 to elect the convention's delegates, which would convene in 1971.
The Philippine constitutional plebiscite of 1973 occurred from 10 to 15 January which ratified the 1973 Constitution of the Philippines.
A constitutional plebiscite was held in the Philippines on February 2, 1987. The plebiscite is pursuant to Presidential Proclamation No. 3, which was issued on March 25, 1986, by President Corazon Aquino. It abolished the Office of the Prime Minister and the Regular Batasang Pambansa. Multi-party elections were held accordingly in 1987.
The Ratification Cases, officially titled as Javellana v. Executive Secretary, was a 1973 Supreme Court of the Philippines case that allowed the 1973 Philippine Constitution to come into full force, which led to President Ferdinand Marcos staying in office and ruling by decree until he was ousted by the People Power Revolution in 1986. The decision became the cornerstone of subsequent decisions whenever the validity of the 1973 Constitution was questioned.
Martial law in the Philippines refers to the various historical instances in which the Philippine head of state placed all or part of the country under military control—most prominently during the administration of Ferdinand Marcos, but also during the Philippines' colonial period, during the second world war, and more recently on the island of Mindanao during the administrations of Gloria Macapagal Arroyo and Rodrigo Duterte. The alternative term "martial law era" as applied to the Philippines is typically used to describe the Marcos martial law period specifically.
The 1969 Philippine presidential and vice presidential elections were held on November 11, 1969. Incumbent President Ferdinand Marcos won a second full term as President of the Philippines. Marcos was the last president in the entire electoral history of the Philippines who ran for and won a second term. His running mate, incumbent Vice President Fernando Lopez, was also elected to a third full term as Vice President of the Philippines. A total of twelve candidates ran for president, but ten of those got less than 0.01% of the vote.
Raul A. Daza is a Filipino lawyer, certified public accountant, and politician, who served in the House of Representatives of the Philippines for 20 years as Representative of the 1st District of Northern Samar. Although he could still seek another term under the term-limit provisions of the Constitution, at 86 he chose not to stand for re-election in the 2019 national elections. He was also a three-term governor of the same province from 2001 to 2010; the Representative of the Lone District of Northern Samar from 1969 until the declaration of martial law in 1972.
At 7:15 p.m. on September 23, 1972, President Ferdinand Marcos announced on television that he had placed the Philippines under martial law, stating he had done so in response to the "communist threat" posed by the newly founded Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), and the sectarian "rebellion" of the Muslim Independence Movement (MIM). Opposition figures of the time accused Marcos of exaggerating these threats and using them as an excuse to consolidate power and extend his tenure beyond the two presidential terms allowed by the 1935 constitution. Marcos's signed Proclamation No. 1081 on September 21, 1972, marking the beginning of a fourteen-year period of one-man rule which effectively lasted until Marcos was exiled from the country on February 25, 1986. Proclamation No. 1081 was formally lifted on January 17, 1981, although Marcos retained essentially all of his powers as dictator until he was ousted in February 1986.
Certain associates of former Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos, historically referred to using the catchphrase "Marcos cronies", benefited from their friendship with Marcos – whether in terms of legal assistance, political favors, or facilitation of business monopolies, during his administration. Marcos critics, and the local and international press began referring to these individuals as "cronies" during the latter days of the Marcos dictatorship, and the Philippine government – especially the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) – continued using the term after the ouster of Marcos in 1986.
The Marcos family is a political family in the Philippines. They have established themselves in the country's politics, having established a political dynasty that traces its beginnings to the 1925 election of Mariano Marcos to the Philippine House of Representatives as congressman for the second district of Ilocos Norte; reached its peak during the 21-year rule of Ferdinand Marcos as president of the Philippines that included his 14-year dictatorship beginning with the declaration of Martial Law throughout the country; and continues today with the political careers of Imelda Marcos, Imee Marcos, Sandro Marcos and reached a fresh political apex with the presidency of Bongbong Marcos.
Eduardo Torcelo Quintero was a Filipino lawyer and diplomat. He served as an ambassador to the United Nations, and an elected delegate to the Philippine Constitutional Convention of 1971 tasked with framing a new constitution for the country to replace the previous 1935 constitution. He is most notable for his role during the 1971 Constitutional Convention when he exposed a bribery scandal during the presidency of Ferdinand Marcos prior to his dictatorial rule.
Ferdinand Marcos's second term as President of the Philippines began on December 30, 1969, as a result of his winning the 1969 Philippine presidential election on November 11, 1969. Marcos was the first and last president of the Third Philippine Republic to win a second full term. The inauguration was at the Quirino Grandstand in Manila. The inauguration marked the commencement of the second four-year term of Ferdinand Marcos as president and the third term of Fernando Lopez as Vice President. The oath of office was administered by Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines Roberto Concepcion.
Referendums in the Philippines are occasionally held at a national, regional or local level. Referendums can either by national or local in scope. In the Philippines, "referendums" and "plebiscites" mean different things.
The alleged September 22, 1972, ambush attack on the then-Defense Minister of the Philippines Juan Ponce Enrile is a disputed incident in which Enrile's white Mercedes-Benz sedan was ambushed near the upscale Wack Wack village in Mandaluyong, Metro Manila. It was cited by President Ferdinand Marcos as the proximate incident which led to the announcement of Marcos' declaration of martial law the following day, although Marcos would later claim that he signed the formal proclamation of martial law on September 21, the day before the Enrile ambush.
In the Philippines during the dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos, groups and individuals which opposed the regime without subscribing to leftist ideology were usually labeled with the terms "middle force," "third force," the "mainstream opposition," or more rarely, as the "conservative opposition." Mostly consisting of middle class and upper class groups which had been apolitical when Marcos first declared martial law, the most prominent examples of oppositionists in this category include religious groups, business sector groups, professional groups, social democrats, academics, journalists, and artists. Politicians from the traditional opposition are also sometimes counted in this category, although the terms are traditionally associated with ground level opposition, rather than political opposition per se.
Movement for a Free Philippines was a Washington, D.C.-based organization established in 1973 by exiled Filipinos in opposition to the authoritarian regime of Ferdinand Marcos in the Philippines.