RIPH

• The present Constitution established a representative democracy or a presidential form of government acknowledging the civilian authority as supreme over the military.
• The prime duty of the government is to serve and protect the people.
• The 1987 Constitution provided for a tripartite system of government, i.e., the Legislative, Executive, and the Judiciary.
• Under the 1987 Constitution, the Philippine government is composed of three equal branches: the Legislative Department, the Executive Department, and the Judicial Department.
• Sovereignty may be internal or external.
• Internal sovereignty denotes the power of the State to control and govern its people, while external sovereignty denotes freedom of a State from external control; independence.
• Sovereignty is defined as the power of the State to command obedience, the power to which, legally speaking, all interests are practically subject and all will coordinate.
• By virtue of sovereignty, the power to amend or revise the 1987 Constitution is vested on the Congress upon a vote of three-fourths of all its members; or through a constitutional convention.
• The Legislative Department is a branch of government that has the power to pass, amend, and repeal laws.
• The legislative power is conferred upon Congress, i.e., House of Representatives and the Philippine Senate, except to the extent reserve to the people by the provision on initiative and referendum.
• The House of Representatives and the Philippine Senate are part of the Legislative Department.
• The Executive Department is another branch of government charged with the execution and enforcement of laws and policies and the administration of public affairs.
• The President of the Philippines is elected by direct vote by the people for a term of six years and may only serve for one term, and is ineligible for reelection.
• The term of the President of the Philippines starts at noon of the 30th day of June after the election.
• The Vice President of the Philippines is elected by direct vote by the people for a term of six years, and may run for reelection once.
• Cabinet secretaries act as the alter ego of the President executing, with his authority, the power of the Office of the President in their respective departments.
• The number of cabinet secretaries varies from time to time depending on the need of an administration.
• According to the Administrative Code of 1987, the President of the Philippines may create or dissolve any department as he sees fit.
• The executive branch extends beyond the national government.
• According to Article X, Section 4 of the constitution, the President of the Philippines is mandated to supervise local governments all over the country.
• Local governments enjoy relative autonomy from the national government according to Republic Act No. 7160, otherwise known as the Local Government Code of 1991.
• Judicial power is vested in the Supreme Court and other lower courts established by law.
• The judiciary has the duty to settle actual controversies involving rights, which are legally demandable and enforceable.
• The judicial branch of the government is composed of the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeals, and other lower courts established by law.
• At the top tier of the judicial hierarchy is the Supreme Court, which is presided over by a Chief Justice and is composed of 14 other Justices.
• The Court may adjudicate En Banc or in divisions of three, five or seven Justices each.
• Currently, the Supreme Court is organized into the En Banc and three divisions of five (5) Justices each.
• The decisions of the Shari’a Circuit Courts are appealable to the Shari’a Appellate Court which, however, has yet to be organized.
• The Sandiganbayan is an anti-graft court that has jurisdiction to try public officers with a salary grade of 27 and above (including any co-accused who are private persons) charged with criminal cases involving violation of the country’s laws on graft and corruption, particularly RA 3019, as amended, and corresponding civil cases for recovery of civil liability arising from the offense.
• The Court of Appeals (CA) is assigned to review cases elevated to it from the Regional Trial Courts (RTCs) as well as quasi-judicial agencies such as the Civil Service Commission, Securities and Exchange Commission, National Labor Relations Commission, and the Land Registration Authority.
• In the first tier are the Courts of the First Level consisting of the Metropolitan Trial Courts (MeTCs), which are established in Metropolitan Manila; the Municipal Trial Courts in Cities (MTCCs), in every city which does not form part of Metropolitan Manila; the Municipal Trial Courts (MTCs), established in each of the other cities or municipalities; and Municipal Circuit Trial Courts (MTCCs), created in each circuit comprising such cities and/or municipalities as grouped by law.
• The CA also reviews cases where the sentence is reclusion perpetua or life imprisonment, as well as decisions of the Office of the Ombudsman in administrative disciplinary cases.
• Likewise, the Sandiganbayan is vested with appellate jurisdiction over final judgments, resolutions or orders of the RTC whether in the exercise of their original or appellate jurisdiction over crimes and civil cases falling within the original exclusive jurisdiction of the Sandiganbayan but which were committed by public officers below Salary Grade 27.
• The decisions of the Sandiganbayan are directly appealable to the Supreme Court.
• RTCs have both original and appellate jurisdiction.
• The CTA also exercises original jurisdiction over all criminal offenses arising from violations of the Tax or Tariff Codes and other laws administered by the Bureau of Internal Revenue or the Bureau of Customs.
• At the same level are the Shari’a Circuit Courts (SCC) which have been established in Islamic regions and provinces to interpret and apply the Code of Muslim Personal Laws (under Presidential Decree No. 1083).
• Each RTC may be composed of a single sala or of several branches.
• The second tier consists of the Regional Trial Courts (RTCs) established in each of the thirteen (13) regions in the Philippines.
• The CA is a collegial court and sits en banc only to exercise administrative, ceremonial or other non-adjudicatory functions.