Institutionalizing Political Party Reforms in the Philippines

The Federal Party was established in 1900 as the first Filipino political party. Today, over a hundred years later, political parties in the Philippines continue to be candidate-centered coalitions of provincial bosses, political machines, and local clans; anchored on clientelistic, parochial, and personal inducements rather than on issues, ideologies, and party platforms. Political parties have existed in one form or another since the first party system (1900–1941), dominated by the Nacionalista Party (NP) was established under the tutelage of the American colonial regime. Soon after, a formal two party system (1946–1972) buttressed the postcolonial liberal democratic regime with the NP and the Liberal Party (LP) alternating in power. This system was destroyed by Ferdinand Marcos and replaced with a one party dictatorship (1972–1986) under his Kilusang Bagong Lipunan (KBL). The restoration of formal democracy in 1986 saw the emergence of a fluid multiparty system (Teehankee, 2002, 2012a)…