Members of prominent political families will be joining the Senate by July, as four pairs of sibling- lawmakers were elected in the recently-held 2025 midterm elections.
So when will a law banning political dynasties be passed?
Examine the composition of the 2025 Senate: It is evident that sibling-lawmakers compose the Upper House. Cong. Camille Villar is set to join her brother Sen. Mark Villar in the upper chamber, after ranking 10th in the elections.
Re-elected Sen. Pia Cayetano, sister of Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano, finished ninth in the race.
Half-brothers Sen. JV Ejercito and Sen. Jinggoy Estrada are hold-overs from the previous 19th Congress.
Erwin Tulfo, brother of Sen. Raffy Tulfo, placed fourth in the 2025 senatorial race.
The majority of the electorate voted for these politicians — it is how the majority decided on who should occupy the Upper House. Are political dynasties here to stay?
A political dynasty is a family in which multiple members are involved in politics — particularly electoral politics. Members may be related by blood or marriage; often, several generations or multiple siblings are involved.
Is this good or bad for a democratic form of government?
The 1987 Constitution, Article 6, Section 26 provides: “SECTION 26. The State shall guarantee equal access to opportunities for public service, and prohibit political dynasties as may be defined by law.”
In an interview for a broadsheet back in 2013, Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago dubbed the Philippines as “the world capital of political dynasties”.
Indeed, with 178 ‘active’ dynasties in Philippine government in status quo, political dynasties are deeply- ingrained in our nation’s politics since the pre-Hispanic period.
Furthermore, these political dynasties control 73 out of the 80 provinces in the Philippines, or about 91 percent of the entire country.
But what is inherently- wrong with giving the power to only one family? In the Philippines, “political power is closely-linked to economic power”.
Those who favor political dynasties would argue that dynasties are not inherently- evil; in fact, some are actually the reason as to why a specific province or city prospered.
In an interview about the existence of political dynasties in Region I, Mayor Mary Jane C. Ortega said, “It is not an issue. Why punish people who deliver?It is not an issue if you are in power for a long time. It is not actually the length of service. It is the quality of service that you give.”
Furthermore, other people can freely submit their candidacies; political clans may be deeply-entrenched in politics but that doesn’t mean they can’t be uprooted if the people vote so.
Some argue that it is the vote of the majority that matters in a democracy. So if the majority votes for members of the same political family, maybe the reason is that they deliver good public service?
Those who are amenable with political dynasties believe that Philippine politics still uses democracy in its basic form. The people still have the power to vote, and they can still petition to oust an official from office.
It is admitted that some politically-powerful families have made a huge difference in the development of our country. So should political dynasties be banned?
Your answer is as good as mine.
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Author’s email: whelmayap@yahoo.com
