The House of Representatives approved House Bill No. 8389 on third and final reading Wednesday, June 3, an anti-political dynasty bill prohibiting second-degree relatives from serving in public office at the same time.
With 267 in favor, 20 opposing, and seven abstaining, the bill seeks to prevent spouses and relatives up to the second degree of consanguinity or affinity from holding elected positions simultaneously.
Although the 1987 Constitution prohibits political dynasties, the provision remains unenforced because Congress has yet to enact an enabling law. Meanwhile, the Senate version of the measure is still pending on its second reading.
The measure marks the farthest an anti-political dynasty proposal has advanced in Congress since the ratification of the 1987 Constitution.
House Bill No. 8389, authored by Speaker Faustino “Bojie” Dy III and Majority Leader Ferdinand Alexander “Sandro” Marcos III, both of whom belong to prominent political families, defined political dynasties as the “concentration, consolidation, or dominance of elective political power” in the hands of a few families.
Under the bill, political candidates must declare under oath that they do not have relatives seeking elective posts in a manner that would violate the proposed anti-political dynasty rules.
Candidates would likewise be required to inform the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) upon becoming aware that a relative is running for public office, according to the measure.
If relatives are elected to positions at the same level of government, such as the Senate, only the candidate who receives the highest number of votes may assume office under the bill.
But if relatives win different positions within the same political unit, the seat will go to the one elected to the higher office.
Despite its passage, some critics have argued that the measure still contains loopholes, noting that relatives may still be able to hold elected positions simultaneously under certain circumstances depending on the offices involved and the political jurisdictions concerned.
First and second-degree relatives include a person’s parents, children, siblings, grandparents, grandchildren, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, and half-siblings, as well as the corresponding relatives of their spouse.
