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Research Question TOWARDS AUTHORITARIANISM: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF THE STYLES OF PRESIDENTIAL LEADERSHIP OF FERDINAND MARCOS AND GLORIA MACAPAGAL-ARROYO AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SCIENCES COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES MANILA IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF BACHELOR OF ARTS IN POLITICAL SCIENCE BY CHRISTOPHER REYSON P. TARIGA APRIL 2014 COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES MANILA PADRE FAURA, ERMITA, MANILA APPROVAL SHEET This thesis, entitled Towards Authoritarianism: A Comparative Study of the Presidential Leadership of Ferdinand Marcos and Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, and written by Christopher Reyson P. Tariga in partial fulfillment of the course requirements for the DEGREE OF BACHELOR OF ARTS in POLITICAL SCIENCE is hereby recommended for approval. _______________________________ Professor Doroteo Abaya, Jr. Adviser This thesis is hereby accepted and approved as partial fulfillment for the requirements for the Degree of Bachelor of Arts in Political Science. _______________________________ Professor Sharon A. Caringal Chairperson Department of Social Sciences TABLE OF CONTENTS Title i Approval Sheet ii Table of Contents iii Acknowledgements iv Chapter I: Introduction 1 Research Question 2 Specific Questions 2 Thesis Statement 2 General Objective 2 Specific Objectives 2 Scope and Limitations 3 Organization of the Study 4 Review of Literature 5 Historical Foundation 5 Democratic Ideals of the President 8 Legal Authorities 11 Analytic Framework 13 Instruments to Influence 14 Situational Style of Leadership 14 Methodology 15 Data Gathering 16 Data Analysis 16 Chapter II: Executive Supervision and Control 18 Chapter III: Executive-Legislative Relations 42 Chapter IV: National Defense 63 Chapter V: Foreign Affairs 88 Chapter VI: Conclusion and Recommendation 103 Bibliography 109 CHAPTER ONE Introduction The Office of the President has an inherent nature of concentrating and centralizing power. This is not uncommon even in democratic societies. It is because this “concentration and centralization of power” – herein termed as authoritarianism – seems to provide an alternative method of leadership particularly in maintaining stability and order during fragile periods and when democratic means appear to be ineffective. This method of concentrating and centralizing power even within the bounds of democracy stands as a major concern in understanding political structures and institutions specifically of those belonging to democratic societies. This is because the presence of authoritarianism within a democracy, even if justified as the only alternative means of exercising leadership, offers an undefined distinction between the two doctrines. Such presence offers a social dilemma in defining whether maintaining majority’s social order and stability, the core values of authoritarianism, should be emphasized over the observance of individual liberties. Through time, the Office of the President has imperatively claimed popular attention brought by its inherent authoritarian nature. Such attention raises inquiries fundamental to the study of modern politics. How, for instance, does authoritarianism progress in a democratic government? Or, is authoritarianism to be regarded more as a decision-making process, a problem-solving undertaking, or a leadership technique rather than a distinct political doctrine? This paper aims to provide an objective view on the role of the Office of the President in paving way to the centralization and concentration of power in a democratic government. Using the presidential leadership of Ferdinand Marcos and Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, this study focuses on understanding how the legal authorities and leadership style of a President provide for the rise of authoritarianism. Tariga 2 Research Question Is authoritarianism a political doctrine or a means to achieving political agenda? Specific Questions 1. What are the social, political, and economic situations in the Arroyo administration which are parallel to that of the Marcos regime? 2. What are the policies and leadership techniques applied by Presidents Marcos and Arroyo in response to the political, economic, and social conditions of their respective regimes? 3. What are the results and outcomes of pursuing such leadership? Thesis Statement When the Office of the President invokes its legal authorities to use to justify the stabilization of certain conditions such as political turmoil, economic instability, and social anxiety, it trudges on authoritarianism in a democratic environment regardless of the changes in history and constitutions. General Objective To understand how the Office of the President provides for the concentration and centralization of power using comparative analysis Specific Objectives 1. To identify similar variables to be used as the basis for comparison; 2. To seek patterns of authoritarianism in the Philippine presidency using these variables Tariga 3 Scope and Limitations In studying the phenomenon of the rise of authoritarianism in a democracy using presidential leadership, it is essential to give comparisons to the leadership styles of different presidents. Comparative studies are significant in understanding the internal dynamics of a certain phenomenon because they provide patterns on structures and events that suggest a causal relation (Dragnich and Rasmussen 1986). They extensively examine the different factors affecting such phenomenon to generate a conclusion that is important in predicting future behavior. In comparing presidential leadership, studying presidents of different countries could prove to be ineffective since their forms of governments have their own distinctive feature. They have their own historical and cultural settings, and their own political instruments to influence. As such, comparison has to be made with presidents under one country in order to draw common categories for a more accurate comparison. The Philippine Presidency, as of today, has been occupied by fifteen individuals since the establishment of the First Republic. The President widely known for an authoritative decision-making will have to be Ferdinand Marcos. He has imprinted such a legacy, especially during Martial Law, that his regime became the model of an authoritarianism molded to fit the Philippine settings. Marcos’ leadership serves as a credible basis for a comparative study on the rise of authoritarianism through presidential leadership. Another controversial President, owing to the fluidity of events in her administration, will have to be Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. Issues on the policies of her Presidency offer similarities with Marcos’ leadership. This poses an inquiry on the leadership style of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. This study, therefore, focuses on Ferdinand Marcos and Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. This study aims to identify how authoritarianism progresses in a democratic environment. Therefore, only the pre-martial law years of Ferdinand Marcos, i.e. from 1965 to 1972, is examined. Tariga 4 Organization of the Study The study is organized into 6 chapters. This chapter provides an introduction to the topic and the research question attended to in this thesis, a review of literature, the scope and limitations, the framework for analysis, and the methodology. The succeeding chapters examine a feature of the Office of the President and compare each president in question based on the particular feature cited. Chapter 2 examines the constitutional authority of the president to supervise and control the executive machineries of the government. It also identifies which institutions are directly affected with this authority. It also determines how the President influences those institutions using the authority of executive supervision and control. Chapter 3 analyzes the legal authority of the president to influence the legislature. The Congress is a major power bloc in the Philippine government. It is responsible for creating laws and treaties needed by the government for it to function effectively. If the President intends to execute all his plans for the government, it would be essential for him to collect the support of the Congress. This chapter looks into the legal authorities that the President uses to influence Congress in concentrating authority. Chapter 4 examines the president’s legal authorities as the Commander-in-Chief of all armed forces. This chapter focuses on how the president uses his military powers to concentrate power in his Office, all in the guise of national defense. Chapter 5 examines the authority of the president in dealing with the country’s foreign affairs. All nations are interdependent. This is the reason why it is necessary to establish good foreign relations. In this chapter, the legal authority of the President to administer foreign policies is explored in an effort to identify which policies were created to further and maintain the concentration and centralization of power. Chapter 6 presents conclusions and generalizations. The aim of this study is to derive common categories for comparison in order to formulate a theory on how the President of the Philippines uses his legal authorities to concentrate power. The preceding chapters examine and analyze the events that led to the authoritarianism of Philippine Presidents. This chapter focuses on the results and outcomes of these events. It also provides recommendations for further studies. Tariga 5 Review of Literature Authoritarianism in the Philippines may be
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