LESSON OBJECTIVES:

At the end of the topic, the learners shall be able

to:
1. identify the features of the Philippine Senate
and House of Representatives in the
government; and
2. discuss the roles and responsibilities of the
Philippine Senate and the House of
Representatives.
Essential Features of the Legislative
Branch of Philippine Government
• Legislative power shall be vested in
Philippine Congress.
• It is a bicameral legislature consisting of
two chambers or houses-the Upper House
known as the Senate and the Lower House
which is also called the House of
Representatives.
Essential Features of the Legislative
Branch of Philippine Government
•By a vote of two-thirds of both Houses in
joint session assembled, voting
separately, Philippine Congress shall
have the sole power to declare the
existence of a state of war
Essential Features of the Legislative
Branch of Philippine Government
•The Senate shall elect its President and
the House of Representatives its
Speaker, by a majority vote of all its
respective Members.
 SENATE PRESIDENT
• Francis Joseph "Chiz"
Guevara Escudero is a
Filipino politician and
lawyer who has served
as the 25th President of
the Senate of the
Philippines since May
20, 2024.
 SENATE PRESIDENT
The
Senate president is
second in the line of
succession to the
presidency, behind
only the vice president
and ahead of the
speaker of the House
 HOUSE SPEAKER
The current House
speaker is Ferdinand
Martin Gomez
Romualdez of Leyte-
1st congressional
district. He was
elected as speaker
on July 25, 2022, the
Essential Features of the Legislative
Branch of Philippine Government
•The Senate and the House of
Representatives shall each have an
Electoral Tribunal which shall be the sole
judge of all contests relating to the
election, returns, and qualifications of
their respective Members
Essential Features of the Legislative
Branch of Philippine Government
•The Senate or the House of
Representatives or any of its respective
committees may conduct inquiries in aid
of legislation in accordance with its duly
published rules of procedure.
Essential Features of the Legislative
Branch of Philippine Government
•Philippine Congress confirms or rejects
Presidential appointments.
The
Philippine
Senate
The
Philippine
Senate
The
Philippine
Senate
 Composition of the
Philippine Senate
•The Senate shall be composed of
twenty-four (24) Senators who shall be
elected at large or nationwide through
popular election by the qualified voters
of the Philippines, as may be provided
by law
 Composition of the
Philippine Senate

•Through synchronized elections, 12

senators are elected every three (3)
years.
 Terms of Office of
Philippine Senators
•The term of office of the Senators shall
be six years and shall commence, unless
otherwise provided by law, at noon on
the thirtieth day of June next following
their election.
 Terms of Office of
Philippine Senators

•No Senator shall serve for more than

two consecutive terms.
 Terms of Office of
Philippine Senators

•The regular election of the Senators shall

be held on the second Monday of May.
 Terms of Office of
Philippine Senators
•In case of vacancy in the Senate, a
special election may be called to fill such
vacancy in the manner prescribed by
law, but the Senator thus elected shall
serve only for the unexpired term.
 Qualifications of Senator
1. a natural-born citizen of the Philippines;
2. at least thirty-five years old;
3. is able to read and write
4. a registered voter; and
5. a resident of the Philippines for not less
than two years before election day.
THE HOUSE OF
REPRESENTATIVE
 Composition of the
House of Representatives
•Lawmakers composing the House of
Representatives are called
Representatives or
Congressmen/Congresswomen.
 Composition of the
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.
 Composition of the
House of Representatives
•The party-list representatives shall
constitute twenty per centum of the
total number of representatives
including those under the party list.
 Composition of the
House of Representatives
316 representatives
253 from
congressional
districts 63 party-list
representatives.
 Term of Office of the
House of Representatives
•A Representative can serve for not
more than three consecutive terms.
 Term of Office of the
House of Representatives
•The Members of the House of
Representatives shall be elected for a
term of three years which shall begin,
unless otherwise provided by law, at
noon on the thirtieth day of June next
following their election.
 Term of Office of the
House of Representatives

•No Member of the House of

Representatives shall serve for more
than three consecutive terms.
 Term of Office of the
House of Representatives

•The regular election of the

Members of the House of
Representatives shall be held on the
second Monday of May.
 Term of Office of the
House of Representatives

•The regular election of the

Members of the House of
Representatives shall be held on the
second Monday of May.
 Term of Office of the
House of Representatives
•In case of vacancy in the House of
Representatives, a special election may
be called to fill such vacancy in the
manner prescribed by law, but the
Member of the House of Representatives
thus elected shall serve only for the
unexpired term.
 Qualifications of Member of
the House of Representatives
1. a natural-born citizen of the Philippines;
2. at least twenty-five years old;
3. is able to read and write; and
4. except the party-list representatives, a
registered voter and a resident for at least
one year in the district where s/he shall be
elected.
 Legislative Process
• the Philippine Congress is responsible for
making enabling laws.
• This role is important to ensure that the
spirit of the constitution is upheld in the
country and laws are essential in regulating
the interactions of people among
themselves and with the government.
 2 main documents in order
to craft laws
1. Bills
2. Resolutions
 BILLS
Are laws in the making
They pass into law when they are approved by
both houses and the President of the Philippines
A bill may be vetoed by the President, but the
House of Representatives may overturn a
presidential veto by garnering a 2/3rds vote.
If the President does not act on a proposed law
submitted by Congress, it will lapse into law after
30 days of receipt
 RESOLUTIONS
Resolutions convey principles and sentiments of
the Senate or the House of Representatives.
 3 KINDS OF SENATE
RESOLUTIONS
1. Joint Resolutions — require the
approval of both chambers of Congress
and the signature of the President, and
have the force and effect of a law if
approved.
 3 KINDS OF SENATE
RESOLUTIONS
2. Concurrent Resolutions — used for
matters affecting the operations of both
chambers of Congress and must be
approved in the same form by both houses,
but are not transmitted to the President for
his signature and therefore have no force
and effect of a law.
 3 KINDS OF SENATE
RESOLUTIONS
3. Simple Resolutions — deal with matters
entirely within the prerogative of one
chamber of Congress, are not referred to
the President for his signature, and
therefore have no force and effect of a law.
 Exclusive Role of
Philippine Congress
The role pertains to the process of
removing the President, the Vice-
President, the Members of the Supreme
Court, the Members of the Constitutional
Commissions, and the Ombudsman in
their respective positions.
 Exclusive Role of
Philippine Congress
This process is called impeachment and
shall be grounded on the culpable
violation of the Constitution, treason,
bribery, graft and corruption, other high
crimes, or betrayal of public trust by the
above-mentioned public officials.
 WHAT IS IMPEACHMENT?
-is a constitutional process that takes
place within the political departments of
our government. The House of
Representatives accuses and the Senate,
sitting as an Impeachment Court,
decides.
 WHAT IS IMPEACHMENT?
-is a process by which a legislative body
or other legally constituted tribunal
initiates charges against a public official
for misconduct
 WHAT IS IMPEACHMENT?
•an expressed power of the
Congress of the Philippines to formally
charge a serving government official
with an impeachable offense
 PROCESS OF IMPEACHMENT
• All cases of impeachment shall be initiated
at the House of Representatives.
• The Senate tries and shall decide on all
cases and if the President of the Philippines
is facing the impeachment case, the Chief
Justice of the Philippine Supreme Court will
preside but shall not vote
 PROCESS OF IMPEACHMENT
• If the case involves the Vice-President, the
Members of the Supreme Court, the Members
of the Constitutional Commissions, and the
Ombudsman, the Senate President shall
preside.
• No person shall be convicted without the
concurrence of two-thirds of all the Members
of the Senate