House OKs anti-political dynasty bill; opposition slams it as ‘fake’, ‘watered-down’

MANILA, Philippines — An anti-political dynasty bill passed on third and final reading in the House of Representatives on Wednesday, June 3, but drew sharp criticism from the opposition, who called it “pro-dynasty,” “weak,” and “fake.”

House Bill No. 8389, or the Anti-Political Dynasty Bill, authored by House Speaker Faustino “Bojie” Dy III and House Majority Leader Ferdinand Alexander “Sandro” Marcos, was approved with 271 affirmative votes, 16 negative votes, and seven abstentions.

A total of 173 lawmakers signed as co-authors of the measure, which was also endorsed and identified as a priority bill by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

“This measure does not intend to target families or restrict legitimate political participation. It seeks to ensure that public office remains open to all Filipinos and that leadership is determined by the people’s trust, not by the concentration of power in a few clans,” Dy said in a press statement.

The bill prohibits relatives of currently elected officials from holding elective positions within the same jurisdiction. However, it only covers relatives up to the second degree of consanguinity or affinity, which includes spouses, children, parents and siblings.

‘Pro-dynasty bill’

Some members of Congress opposed the measure, describing it as “fake,” “watered-down” and “pro-dynasty,” saying it legitimizes political dynasties rather than prohibiting them.

ML Party-list Rep. Leila de Lima said in a statement that the bill has several limitations, including the lack of a succession ban, the absence of rules preventing members of the same family from simultaneously holding positions in the same province, and no restriction on families holding posts across multiple districts.

She added that the measure also does not cover party-list representatives, broader family networks, and other “back doors” into public office.

“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,” De Lima said.

Akbayan Reps. Chel Diokno and Perci Cendaña, who voted against the bill, also raised concerns over its loopholes, saying it still allows the concentration of political power among families.

“If one family can hold positions across multiple levels of government, that is still concentration of power,” Diokno said.

Meanwhile, Cendaña said the measure failed to meet public expectations.

“We wasted the chance that there is overwhelming public support for an Anti-Political Dynasty legislation,” he said in a Facebook post.

Kabataan Party-list Rep. Renee Co also voted no, saying the bill is not worthy of being called an “anti-political dynasty” measure due to its limitations.

She added that political dynasties are merely symptoms of a deeper systemic problem.

“Sa huli, may mas malalim na ugat ang political dynasties—ang burukrata kapitalismo o ang paggamit sa gobyerno bilang negosyo… Burukrata kapitalismo ang sakit, habang political dynasties ang isa sa maraming sintomas nito,” Co said.

(In the end, political dynasties have a deeper root—bureaucrat capitalism, or the use of government as a business… Bureaucrat capitalism is the disease, while political dynasties are one of its many symptoms.)