The National Citizens’ Movement for Free Elections on Tuesday said they acknowledged the recent passing of House Bill No. 8389, or the Anti-Political Dynasty Act, by the House of Representatives.
Initially, the group said it was a long overdue passage. However, the group said it was a watered-down measure.
“Yet Namfrel cannot in good conscience celebrate this bill as a genuine victory for democratic reform. After careful review, we are compelled to declare: HB 8389 is a watered-down measure that institutionalizes loopholes, offers political dynasties a legal roadmap for survival, and risks permanently closing the door on truly meaningful reform,” the poll body said.
“HB 8389 prohibits spouses and relatives within the second degree of consanguinity or affinity from simultaneously running for or holding elective office within the same jurisdiction. On its face, this sounds meaningful. Proponents cite projections that the bill could affect over 5,000 elective seats and displace up to 61% of municipal mayors with dynastic ties… But scrutiny of the bill’s mechanics exposes a far more troubling reality. The bill does not ban dynasties - it merely regulates which family members may sit together in the same room. Everything else remains on the table,” they added.
According to Namfrel, the following issues were not addressed, that the second-degree ceiling is too low, a jurisidictional loophole, and that the party-list system is unanswered.
“The bill only restricts relatives from simultaneously holding office within the same jurisdiction or tier. This single design flaw is a fatal concession. A spouse may hold a Senate seat while a sibling runs an entire congressional district. A parent may occupy a governorship while a child holds a separate congressional seat. Cousins, uncles, and nephews may blanket an entire province’s municipal governments - all perfectly legal,” they pointed out.
Namfrel also expressed concern about the “long-term political consequences of allowing a structurally deficient law to stand as the definitive legislative response to the dynasty problem.”
“History teaches us that a weak law passed in lieu of a strong one does not invite improvement - it suppresses it. Once Congress declares that it has “addressed” political dynasties through HB 8389, advocates for genuine reform will face the far steeper challenge of arguing that an existing law is insufficient. Entrenched political clans and their allies will have every incentive to resist reopening the question. The passage of a flawed law, in this respect, may do more lasting damage to democratic reform in the Philippines than decades of legislative inaction,” they said.
They called on Congress to commit to nothing less than a “genuine, comprehensive” anti-dynasty law, that calls on the following: Fourth-degree coverage, vertical bans across government tiers, families not being allowed to use the party-list system, strict succession and cooling-off rules, and only one seat per family.
“The bill now proceeds to the Senate, where counterpart measures with significantly stronger provisions have been filed and deliberated. Namfrel calls on both chambers of Congress to approach the bicameral conference process not as a negotiation to water down the stronger Senate version, but as an opportunity to forge a law worthy of the Constitution’s vision,” the poll watchdog said.
“We urge the Bicameral Conference Committee to reconcile the House and Senate versions in favor of the strongest, most comprehensive standards: fourth-degree coverage, vertical bans, party-list inclusion, and strict anti-succession provisions. The Filipino people have waited 39 years for this law. They deserve the real thing — not a legislative shortcut that protects the dynasties it purports to dismantle,” they concluded.
