Federalism in the Philippines

Federalism in the Philippines (Filipino: Pederalismo sa Pilipinas) refers to political movements in the Philippines that are variants of federalism. Federalism has grown in popularity among Filipinos in recent decades, with multiple political candidates successfully campaigning on federalism-based platforms. In 2022, Bongbong Marcos won the Philippine presidential election as a member of the pro-federalist Partido Federal ng Pilipinas political party (English: Federal Party of the Philippines; abbr. PFP).

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The concept of a federal government for the Philippines was first suggested by

In 1899, Filipino revolutionaries Emilio Aguinaldo and Apolinario Mabini also suggested dividing the islands into three federal states.^[2] The Federal State of the Visayas was established as a proposed administrative unit under a federal form of government but was abolished a year later by Aguinaldo's central government in Malolos.

One of the first proponents of federalism in the Philippines in the 21st century is professor Jose Abueva from the University of the Philippines who argued that a federal form of government is necessary to more efficiently cater to the needs of the country despite its diversity.^[3] The primary goals of a constitutional amendment is to increase decentralization, greater local power and access to resources most especially among regions outside Metro Manila which has long been dubbed as rather imperial.^[4]

Aside from Abueva, senator

However, in 2009, after Senate and House resolutions supporting charter change were released, an estimated 13,000 to 15,000 people gathered in Makati to protest against these executive department-deriving proposals for constitutional reform. This was due to speculations that Philippine president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo would use such amendments to extend her hold in office.^[6] In addition, Pulse Asia published in the same year their survey regarding public support for the proposed charter change; the survey reported that four out of ten Filipino adults, or 42% of all respondents, opposed the amendment, with 25% still undecided and 33% in favor. Pulse Asia furthered that from 2006 to 2009 there was no significant change of sentiment against the charter change proposal, although indecision increased by 6%.^[7]

In late 2014, then-

In May 2016, President-elect Rodrigo Duterte stated that a plebiscite on the proposed replacement of the unitary state with a federal one will be held in two years.^[15] On December 7, 2016, Duterte signed Executive Order No. 10 creating a consultative committee to review the 1987 Constitution.^[16]

The resolution may require the revision of 14 of the 18 Articles of the 1987 Philippine Constitution and the addition of two new articles. It sought to adopt a

The proposal would result in the creation of eleven "states" and one federal administrative region.[20]^[21]

Proposed designations, capitals, and geographic extents (2008)[19] States (11) Letter State Capital A Northern Luzon Tuguegarao B Central Luzon San Fernando, Pampanga C Southern Tagalog Tagaytay D Minparom Mamburao E Bicol Legazpi F Eastern Visayas Catbalogan G Central Visayas Toledo H Western Visayas Iloilo City I Northern Mindanao Cagayan de Oro J Southern Mindanao Davao City K BangsaMoro Marawi Other (1) Letter Federal Administrative Region M Metro Manila

Within the joint resolution are certain proposals such as election of senators based on states, senators representing overseas voters and the state governor and vice-governor as one team. The Judicial and Bar Council which screens nominees to the judiciary would be abolished. Geographic locations of the three branches of the government would also be reconsidered. In the proposal, the legislative department would be transferred to what would become the State of Central Visayas while the judicial department would be moved somewhere within the State of Northern Luzon. The executive department would remain within the federal administrative region of Metro Manila.^[22]

Rep.

President Rodrigo Duterte has pushed for the adoption of a federal system of government for the Philippines, which was one of his campaign promises when he ran for president in 2016.^[25]

Duterte issued Executive Order No. 10 which created the 25-member Consultative Committee (ConCom) on December 7, 2016 for the review of the 1987 Constitution. Duterte appointed the first 22 members of the committee in January 24, 2018.^[26] The ConCom submitted its first federal constitution draft on July 9, 2018.

In 2018, surveys showed a lack of awareness on federalism was attributed to the lack of support for the campaign by the public.[29] As of August 2020, the Duterte administration was still pursuing the shift to federalism and was considering three options to accomplish this; by amending the 1987 Constitution through Constitutional Convention (Con-Con), Constituent Assembly (Con-Ass), or people's initiative.^{[30][needs update]}

A March 2018 Pulse Asia poll reported that 27% of Filipinos supported a federal government in the Philippines, while 66% expressed opposition and 6% where unsure.^[31] While another poll by Social Weather Stations in early 2018 showed that 75% where unaware of Federalism as a form of government while 25% said they were aware, with 37% of respondents supporting federalism, 29% opposing, and 34% were unsure.^[32]

• Proposed federal states of the Philippines
• Federal State of the Visayas
• Bangsamoro
• Cordillera autonomy movement