ARTICLE IV AND V

• Citizenship


  The status or characteristic of being a citizen
• Types of citizens


  • Citizen - person who owes allegiance to a government, usually applied to members of a democratic society
  • Subject - term applied to members of a monarchial society
  • Nationals - term which can be used for members of a democratic or monarchial society
• Ways of acquiring citizenship

  • By birth (involuntary) - jus sanguinis (law of blood), jus soli/jus loci (law of place)
  • By legislation/direct act of Congress
  • By marriage - foreign husband retains original citizenship, foreign wife automatically becomes Filipino citizen
  • By naturalization (derivative naturalization) - by judgment of the court, by direct act of Congress, by administrative proceedings
• Ways of losing Philippine citizenship

  • By applying for naturalization in another country
  • By expressed renunciation
  • By denaturalization
  • By serving in the armed forces of another country
  • By being declared by competent authority as a deserter in the Philippine armed forces during times of war
• Expatriation


  Voluntary loss or renunciation of one's citizenship
• Ways of reacquiring citizenship

  • By naturalization
  • By direct act of Congress
  • By repatriation - process of reacquiring one's original citizenship
• Kinds of Filipino citizens

  • Natural born citizens - citizens from birth without having to perform any act to acquire or perfect their Philippine citizenship
  • Naturalized citizens
  • Citizens by election (now deemed as natural born citizens)
• Dual allegiance is voluntary and illegal while dual citizenship is involuntary and legal
• Suffrage


  The right to vote, which also includes the right not to vote. It is not an inherent right because the state is the one deciding who should exercise the right to vote.
• Qualifications of a voter/electorate

  • Citizen of the Philippines
  • Not disqualified by law
  • At least 18 years old
  • Resident of the Philippines for at least 1 year and in the place where he proposes to vote for at least 6 months
• Registration is not a qualification but a pre-condition for voting
• Scope/type of suffrage


  • Election - process of choosing representatives who would act or decide on our behalf
  • Plebiscite - process by which any proposed amendment to or revision of the Constitution is submitted to the people for approval or rejection (ratification)
  • Referendum - process by which any proposed law or ordinance made by the national or local legislative body is submitted to the people for approval or disapproval
  • Initiative - process by which the people can directly propose and enact laws or propose amendments to the Constitution
  • Recall - process by which an elective official may be removed from office before the expiration of his term by a vote of the people
• Tasks given to Congress under Article V Sec.2

  • Secure the secrecy and sanctity of the ballot
  • Create a system for absentee voting for qualified Filipinos abroad
  • Design a procedure for disabled and illiterates so that they can vote without the assistance of others
  • No literacy and property qualifications for voting
  • One man, one vote principle
• Having the right to vote freely is meaningless if there is no assurance that there will be a fair, honest and just count of votes
• The Omnibus Election Code is the compilation of election laws in the Philippines