FAR from the purpose for which it was drafted, the House of Representatives had just approved on its third and final reading what looks more like a bill designed to keep political clans in power — discretely though.
Voting 267 in favor, 20 against (including partylist stalwarts Chel Diokno and Leila De Lima), and seven abstentions, the lower chamber unanimously passed House Bill 8389, otherwise known as Anti-Political Dynasty Act.
Interestingly, most of the legislators who voted in favor of HB 8389, form part of dynasties lording over their respective bailiwicks.
For one, describing HB 8389 as watered-down version is an understatement. A closer look into the House-approved legislative measured showed a grim view of an institutionalized dynasty system in the country.
Authored by House Speaker Faustino Dy III and House Majority Leader Sandro Marcos, the measure prohibits spouses and relatives up to the second degree of consanguinity or affinity from holding or running for elective positions simultaneously within the same jurisdiction. By second degree this means parents, children, grandparents, grandchildren, siblings and their spouses running in the same province, city, municipality or barangay.
If relatives win, the one with the higher vote count or the one elected to a higher position will be allowed to serve. The House-approved bill has been criticized for failing to curb the dominance of political families, with some opposition members voting against it as it legitimizes rather than stop political dynasties.
Below is the view of Mamamayang Liberal Rep. De Lima in her Facebook page:
“𝐈 𝐫𝐞𝐟𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭 𝐚 𝐥𝐚𝐰 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐞𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐳𝐞𝐬 𝐩𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐝𝐲𝐧𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬!
I vote NO to House Bill No. 8389 as it is “not a true or genuine anti-dynasty law, but rather a dynasty legitimization act.”
First: The bill has no succession ban. A governor can be succeeded by a spouse, who can be succeeded by a child, who can be succeeded by a sibling — indefinitely, legally, under this bill.
Second: The bill permits a governor, a mayor, and a Representative from the same family governing the same province simultaneously, as it only prohibits relatives from holding office within the same level of government, not within the same territory.
Third: The bill permits multiple congressional districts controlled by one family within the same province. Three adjacent districts, three relatives, all voting for the same party line: legal. Exactly as it operates today. Nothing changes.
Fourth: The bill neither covers party-list representatives as protected positions nor references incumbents. Therefore, a senator’s son or daughter can be nominated and serve as a party-list representative – perfectly legal under this bill
Fifth: The bill limits the prohibition to relatives within the second degree of consanguinity or affinity, covering spouses, parents, children, and siblings. However, this second-degree prohibition excludes broader kinship networks, such as grandparents, first cousins, uncles, aunts, nieces, and nephews, through which dynastic power is often exercised. Limiting the prohibition to only the second degree narrows the reach of the law and allows extended family networks, which remain close-knit in Philippine culture, to continue operating within the same political sphere.
Sixth: The bill does not address, hence, permits substitution, caretaker designation, and every indirect route to office. The prohibition under this bill covers only direct candidacy, not the back doors.
The Filipino people have been waiting for this law since 1987. Tatlumpu’t siyam na taon.
We can do better than this. We can pass a law worthy of the wait. A law the framers of the 1987 Constitution would recognize as the fulfillment of their mandate, not a betrayal of it.
I vote NO to HB 8389, not because I oppose anti-dynasty legislation. I vote NO precisely because I support it. I refuse to support a law that effectively institutionalizes political dynasties.
“The Filipino people deserve better. The Constitution demands better. We can do better, de Lima emphasized.
Akbayan Rep. Chel Diokno labelled HB8389 as a “pro-dynasty” and “fake” measure that strengthens rather than bans political clans. He voted “No” on the third and final reading, arguing the bill fails to stop family members from holding power simultaneously across different government levels.
Citing the pro-dynasty loophole, Diokno said the bill only covers relatives up to the second degree, allowing dynasties to maintain power.
He highlighted that under the bill, one family can still hold positions across multiple levels of government (e.g., a senator and a governor), failing to create true competition.
It is a “half-baked” reform, he argued that after 38 years, the House produced a weak “show piece” legislation that failed to fulfill the 1987 Constitution’s mandate.
He instead asked for “true reform” that is stricter and genuinely opens public office to ordinary Filipinos and prohibits the concentration of power.
Despite his opposition to this specific version, Diokno has previously advocated for passing a robust anti-political dynasty law to address systemic corruption.
Others opposed to the House-approved bill were:
Rep. Perci Cendaña (Akbayan Party-list): called it “fake” by allowing the concentration of political power among family members to continue.
Rep. Renee Co (Kabataan Party-list): Voted no as the bill fails to address the deeper roots of “bureaucrat capitalism.”
Rep. Antonio Tinio (ACT Teachers Party-list): called the bill “unacceptable,” citing its failure to provide a strict definition of political dynasties.
Rep. Sarah Jane Elago (Gabriela Women’s Party): criticized the bill as a “mockery of the Constitution.”
Rep. Kaka Bag-ao (Dinagat Islands): Criticized the bill’s failure to address the full scope of dynasty-driven power.
Rep. Edgar Erice (Caloocan 2nd District): called it a “pro-political dynasty” bill.