PROS AND CONS OF PARLIAMENTARY SYSTEMS

PROS AND CONS OF PARLIAMENTARY SYSTEMS

I am aware that this is going to be a long conversation but let us just start it now. We have heard so much advocacy for a federal system, but why is there no equivalent advocacy for a parliamentary system? Is it not that in many countries, federal systems and parliamentary systems often go together?

To be clear, I am in favor of a federal system, where all the member states govern themselves for the most part, except for a few centralized functions like defense, finance, and foreign affairs. This way, regions can truly develop according to their own strengths. At the same time, I am also in favor of a parliamentary system, where members of parliament are elected from parliamentary districts within each member state, and from among them a Prime Minister is chosen. The Prime Minister, in turn, forms a Cabinet that will essentially become his government.

Now, here lies the most contentious part. In a parliamentary system, the Prime Minister is not directly elected by the people. Unlike our presidential system, where we cast our votes for the head of state and government, parliamentary voters only elect their district representatives. The leader of the majority party in parliament then becomes Prime Minister. In the United Kingdom, for example, citizens vote for their Members of Parliament (MPs), and whichever party secures the most seats forms the government. The Monarch formally appoints the Prime Minister, but this is only ceremonial.

So, here’s the big question: would we, as Filipinos, be willing to give up our right to directly vote for a President, in exchange for a system that would make it easier to replace a bad Prime Minister?

That is one major advantage of the parliamentary system. A bad Prime Minister can be replaced quickly through a vote of no confidence. In contrast, a bad President is very difficult to remove—short of impeachment, resignation, or worse, people power. In other words, parliamentary governments are inherently more flexible.

Of course, this is not as simple as it sounds. The Cabinet in a parliamentary system is composed of MPs themselves, and while they cannot directly vote out a Prime Minister, their collective dissent—through mass resignations or party mechanisms—can force a leadership change. Think of what happened to Margaret Thatcher and more recently Boris Johnson. Compare that to our system, where Cabinet secretaries are not elected and are merely appointees, beholden to the President no matter how unpopular or incompetent he becomes.

But perhaps there is no right or wrong here, because both systems work in many countries. The real question is: can we, in the Philippines, sustain at least two strong parties that could compete for parliamentary leadership? That is where the challenge lies. Without strong parties, a parliamentary system could easily descend into chaos, with fragile coalitions and constant leadership changes.

Our current multi-party system is too personality-driven and transactional. What we call “political parties” are more like electoral vehicles for presidential candidates, easily abandoned after elections. Unless we reform our political party system—through stricter rules on party-switching, public funding, and ideology-based platforms—a parliamentary system might not work as intended.

Still, the debate is worth having. Federalism could empower our regions, but parliamentary government could make our politics more accountable and responsive. Why are we not pushing for both at the same time? After all, many federal systems—like Canada, Australia, and India—are also parliamentary. Why do we always imagine these reforms in isolation?

Perhaps we are afraid of letting go of the notion that we must personally vote for a President. But should democracy be defined only by how we vote for our leaders, or also by how easily we can remove bad ones?

It may be a long conversation, but one thing is sure: our current system is not delivering the kind of governance we need. Whether we choose federalism, parliamentarism, or both, the goal must be the same—making government closer to the people, more accountable, and easier to change when it fails.

Ramon Ike V. Seneres, www.facebook.com/ike.seneres
iseneres@yahoo.com, 09088877282, senseneres.blogspot.com

11-28-2025 

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