Political families in the Philippines
Despite the negative reaction of the populace towards political dynasties and the association between dynastic activities and corruption,[2] it is only prohibited in the members of the youth-oriented Sangguniang Kabataan and under the Bangsamoro Electoral Code.
According to the Philippine Institute for Development Studies, placing limits on political dynasties aims "to regulate self-serving and opportunistic behavior and to promote effective and accountable governance".
[3] Despite the provision in the Constitution, the Sangguniang Kabataan Reform Act of 2016 is the only statute that has been implemented concerning the status of political dynasties in the Philippines.
(c) The term of office of Barangay officials and members of the Sangguniang Kabataan shall be for three (3) years, which shall begin after the regular election of Barangay officials on the second Monday of May 1994.According to Prof. Ronald Mendoza, "Clearly, political clans have found a way around term limits, by fielding more family members in power—giving rise to more fat political dynasties.
[8] According to Section 3 (d) in Article IV of the Bangsamoro Electoral Code, "Nominees submitted by the RPPP [regional parliamentary political party] shall not be related to each other within the second degree of consanguinity or affinity.
[14] The bill would give "the best and brightest from a disadvantaged family equal access to public service which otherwise could have been held and occupied by other members of political dynasties", said Representative Fredenil Castro of the electoral reform committee.
[24] In a study done in 2012 by economists Beja, Mendoza, Venida, and Yap, it was estimated that 40% of all provinces in the Philippines have a provincial governor and congressman that are related in some way.
According to one study, these provinces "are afflicted by low levels of human development, bad governance, violence and poor business climates".
This study stated that "this partial correlation coefficient finds a positive relationship between poverty incidence and the proportion of political dynasties in each province.
According to a Philippine Star editorial, "Dynasty building undermines the criminal justice system, with clans controlling the police, prosecution, judiciary and jail facilities in their turfs.
[47] Although political dynasties have already been present in the Philippines for a significant period of time, the public has only recently started clamoring for a change in system.
[50] Michael Henry Yusingco keeps on discussing this and more electoral issues in broadcasting stations and advising the COMELEC and other private institutions to galvanize communities to address voter problems and communicate them to policy-makers.
These kinds of situations arise as conflicts of interests—political dynasties often hold significant economic power in a province—and their interests are overrepresented due to dynastic politics.
[54] Political dynasties also tend to maintain the status quo and develop interests largely separate from the people they were supposed to be serving.
[57] Lawyers from the University of the Philippines filed a petition asking the Supreme Court to compel Congress to pass a law banning political dynasties.
The Arroyo administration's issuance of Executive Order 546 then allowed the Ampatuans to form their own private army, also known as civilian volunteer organizations.
[68] Brothers Datu Andal Jr., Zaldy, and Anwar Ampatuan Sr. were convicted of 57 counts of murder and sentenced to life imprisonment without parole on December 19, 2019.
The most prominent member of the family, Benigno Aquino Jr., was a leading figure in the opposition against the Marcos regime who was assassinated on the tarmac in the Manila International Airport in 1983 upon arriving from exile.
He is perpetually banned from holding any public office after the Court of Appeals affirmed the charges of grave misconduct, dishonesty and conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service over the construction of a Makati school building on May 28, 2019.
The father of the family started to lead the city with full of corruption in the government, secret drug dealing, smuggling, raping the women, bribery, and killing of opposition leaders.
Her wife, Vittorio "Marvey" A. Marino is a congressman of 5th district in Batangas City used also a "trapo" tactics by naming his program such as "MAM Card" for health insurance, and financial assistance to garner votes.They are responsible for implementing infrastructure projects named after them under the initial of their father called "EBD" such as schools, bridges, barangay halls, multi-purpose halls, and sports courts.
On January 30, 2025, Dimacuha and Mariño opened the controversial Balagtas Flyover, which it cause heavy traffic and inconvenient to decongest the city.
They have bought ₱6-Billion of moderns vans or trucks to illegally arrest who are not voting for them and make a premature campaigning, which hipocritically they does when Dimacuha use epal tactics of opening the New City Cemetery and Park based in Bolbok Diversion Road, General Assembly Building in Catandala, and others that the money is used from the taxpayers which they stoled from the pockets.
Also there is a history that Eddie Dimacuha always ordering barangay captains and his men to rig to elections or make an election fraud like hacking the system of vote counting machine and death threat tactics that causes the mayoralty candidate of 2013 from Liberal Party Joe Tolentino and 2016 mayoralty candidate from PDP–Laban Kristine Balmes.
They are removing students from their scholarship program under their name sake, if they don't vote for her and her husband as mayor and congressman, also if they are not their allies or what they endorse in barangay elections which they portray theirselves as dictators of the city.
The Duterte political family began with Vicente "Nene" Gonzales Duterte, a lawyer and former mayor of Danao, Cebu in 1945 who in 1946, migrated with his family to Davao to practice law and became a governor of the then-unified province of Davao in 1959 until 1965 when President Ferdinand Marcos appointed him as Secretary of General Services which position he held until his death in 1968.
His son Rodrigo "Digong" Duterte, also a lawyer, who followed his political footsteps in Davao, became the 16th President of the Philippines after winning in the 2016 presidential election.
[75] Jinggoy is currently facing plunder charges before the Sandiganbayan anti-graft court over his involvement in a multibillion peso pork barrel scam.
He was succeeded by his elder brother, Manuel "Mar" Araneta Roxas II, who was elected in 1993 and later became Secretary of Trade and Industry in 2000 under the Estrada administration.
His wife, Cynthia Villar ran as Representative of the Lone District of Las Piñas and won in a landslide victory in 2001 and seated until 2010.
