Politics Governance and Citizenship: The Moral and Legal Dimensions of Filipino Citizenship

Introduction to Citizenship and Governance

• The study of politics and governance concludes with a deep dive into the concept of citizenship, exploring its importance, legal definitions, and practical applications in contemporary Philippine society.

• Citizenship is primarily analyzed through two lenses:

  • Legal Sense: Defined by the laws of the state (e.g., being a Filipino by law).

  • Practice: How citizens engage with the political system, exercise their rights, and interact within the public sphere.

• The central theme of this discussion is the interplay, or the "nexus," between citizenship and politics, particularly within the framework of Philippine democracy.

Paradoxes of Philippine Democracy

• Philippine democracy is described as both participatory and illiberal, or inclusive yet unequal. This creates a specific "democratic paradox" characterized by several key observations:

  • High Participation: Filipinos engage heavily in voting, social movement mobilizations, and continuous democratic engagements.

  • Toleration of Illiberalism: Alongside high participation, there is a simultaneous toleration for coercion, informality, and inequality.

  • Elite Democracy: Not all forms of participation are treated as equal or legitimate. The system often favors the perspectives of the educated and wealthy elites.

• The "Let Me Educate You" Phenomenon (2022 Elections): This phrase became a symbol of the divide between different voter bases. Supporters of certain candidates—often coming from top-tier academic institutions like the "Big Four" ($UP$, $Ateneo$, $Dela Sal$, and $UST$)—grounded their political arguments in legal rationalism and data. However, this approach often came across as exclusionary toward those without access to higher education, which is still a privilege rather than a universally accessible right in the Philippines.

• The rise of advanced technology, such as $ChatGPT$, has further altered the landscape of political discourse and the way information is processed and shared within the citizenship framework.

Legal Definitions of Citizenship (The 1987 Constitution)

• In the legal and constitutional sense, citizenship answers the question: "Who legally belongs to the Philippine state?"

• Article IV of the 1987 Constitution: This article defines Filipino citizenship as a binary legal status. One is either a citizen or not (stateless or a foreign national).

• Modes of Acquiring Citizenship:

  • By Birth: This is the most common method.

  • By Naturalization: A legal process for foreigners to become citizens.

  • By Reacquisition or Retention: Specific to those who lost citizenship and sought to regain it after becoming citizens of another country.

• Legal Principles of Acquisition:

  • Jus Sanguinis (Right of Blood): The Philippines follows this rule. If your parents are Filipino citizens, you are automatically a Filipino citizen regardless of your place of birth.

  • Jus Soli (Right of Soil): Citizenship determined by the territory of birth (e.g., the United States). The Philippines does not adopt this rule.

Rights and Responsibilities of Legal Citizens

• Political Rights:

  • The right to vote (suffrage).

  • The right to run for public office (contingent on specific qualifications).

  • Article VI (Legislative): Specifically outlines requirements for senators and congressmen, including age and residency requirements, as well as the ability to read and write.

• Civil Rights:

  • The right to due process.

  • Equal protection of the laws.

• Social Membership: Citizenship is a recognition of being part of the sovereign people of the Philippines. While these rights are formally equal for all citizens in the legal framework, their application in practice is often unequal.

The Liberal Democratic Model vs. Moral Politics

• The Liberal Democratic Model: Assumes the state acts as a neutral guarantor of rights and that politics operates effectively through elections, laws, and institutions. It presupposes that providing rights to individuals will naturally lead to a functional democracy.

• Wataru Kusaka’s Critique: In his book "Moral Politics in the Philippines," Kusaka argues that democracy isn't simply a success or a failure based on institutional metrics. Instead, he views citizenship as a practice—something a person does, not just something they have.

• Citizenship as Performance: For Kusaka, citizenship is a moral relationship between the state, the poor, the middle class, and political elites. It is judged and evaluated morally in everyday political interactions.

The Dual Public Sphere: Civic Sphere vs. Mass Sphere

• Kusaka divides the Philippine public sphere into two distinct domains with differing moralities:

• The Civic Sphere (Middle Class / Well-off):

  • Morality: Supports the morality of capitalism as a tool to reform a corrupt, inefficient state.

  • Values: Neoliberal economic reforms, privatization, liberalization, and equal opportunity.

  • Political Outlook: They prescribe a "correct" way of doing politics based on education and legal rationalism. They often view those from the mass sphere with a lack of sympathy if they fail to meet middle-class standards.

• The Mass Sphere (Urban Poor / Lower Class):

  • Morality: Based on fairness, generosity toward those in need, and the protection of the dignity of the poor.

  • Values: Livelihood and social support.

  • Political Outlook: They often hold a cynical view of the civic sphere's ideals. They criticize political leaders who appear callous or disinterested in the needs of those making an honest living.

• Common Ground: Both spheres share an antipathy toward "trapos" (corrupt politicians) and use religion as a moral reference point (e.g., the collaborative mobilization during $EDSA I$).

Conditional Citizenship and Moral Exclusion

• Unlike the binary legal status of the Constitution, Kusaka argues that practical citizenship is conditional based on behavior and morality.

• Standards for the Poor: To be seen as "legitimate" citizens by the civic sphere, the urban poor are expected to be disciplined, orderly, grateful, and law-abiding.

• Consequences of "Moral Failure": If the poor are perceived as undisciplined (e.g., engaging in rallies or illegal assemblies), they face:

  • Political exclusion.

  • Withdrawal of sympathy from the middle class.

  • Justification of violence against them.

• Examples of Deserved Violence: The discourse surrounding drug war victims during the Duterte administration often involved moral exclusion. Despite being legal citizens, victims were labeled as "pests" or criminals, leading many to justify extrajudicial killings ($EJK$) as a form of "necessary medicine" or "disciplinary action."

• Case of Alisa and Activism: The lecture notes that activism (e.g., the Toboso encounter or rallies) is often viewed through this moral lens. Even if one disagrees with an ideology, the dehumanization of activists (e.g., "deserved to die" or "corned beef" references) demonstrates the cruelty of moral exclusion.

Divergent Logic in Elections

• Candidate Evaluation:

  • Civic Sphere: Values candidates with high educational qualifications ($UP$, Harvard) and legal-rationalist platforms.

  • Mass Sphere: Often supports "artista" (celebrity) candidates (e.g., Robin Padilla, the Tulfo family) because they are perceived as "one of us" who can represent and empower their interests.

• The Logic of Vote Buying:

  • Civic Perspective: Views selling one's vote as a loss of dignity and a sign of being uneducated/irrational.

  • Mass Perspective: For someone in a "squatter" area or a construction worker with an insecure income, $1,000$ or $2,000$ pesos represents an immediate safety net. While the civic sphere has the privilege to think "ten steps ahead" or plan for next year, the mass sphere must focus on immediate survival.

Conclusion and Challenges for Civic Consciousness

• Moving Beyond Binarism: The lecture challenges students to move beyond the "black and white" or "dualistic" perspectives of morality in politics. Viewing issues as "Marcos vs. Duterte" or "Loyalist vs. Critic" prevents a holistic understanding of social problems.

• Overcoming Epistemic Bubbles: There is a need to break out of academic circles or social media bubbles that merely affirm existing biases. True political maturity involves moving beyond alienation and the lack of sympathy for those outside one's sphere.

• Engagement in Neutral Spaces: Inspired by insights from a diplomacy forum featuring Deputy Head Duffy of the Irish Consulate, the lecture suggests engaging with others in neutral spaces and using inclusive language that acknowledges prejudices without letting them block discourse.

• Goal of Citizenship: To develop a civic consciousness that sees citizenship as more than a legal status, focusing on critical thinking and finding solutions that move beyond the dichotomy of moral exclusion and the justification of violence.