FEDERALISM: Uni ication or Division?

If we are to look back through history, long before the Japanese, Americans or the Spaniards came to force into us their political and religious systems, the Philippine Archipelago had been employing its separate type of government from what we have presently ‐ Federalism.

Pre-colonial Philippine Islands were composed of independent states ruled by different chieftains. The Rajahs of the Rajahnates of Maynila, Butuan, and Cebu, the Lakans of the Kingdom of Tondo and the Sultans of the Sultanates of Maguindanao and Sulu are just some of the examples of how Federalism was inadvertently utilized back during that time only, they knew it by “barangay.”

There was no unified central governing body that time, not because they did not want to be united under one ruler but because they could not. The Philippines is an archipelago comprised of more than 7,100 islands. Imagine traveling island after island, back and forth onboard a traditional wooden boat or “balangay” as what they called it back then. It would take weeks before you could reach a single destination let alone a dozen more.

Then came the Spaniards and just like that, the slimmest notion of a decentralized type of government went flinging off the door, forcing us into submission under a unified government to ultimately gain sole control over their occupied territories.

However, is having a decentralized government, i.e. Federalism, better than the type of government we presently have?

Majority of the democratic countries around the world have a unitary centralized government, Germany, Ireland and South Korea, wherein power is centered around the national government. In Federalism, a constitution must be written and enacted to share this power between the states and its units. In other words, the national government will no longer have the monopoly of power and authority over the local affairs of the state. These units, referred to as regional or provincial governments, have the power to act independently in certain areas of governance provided by the formulated constitution. Countries such as the United States of America, Canada, and Australia are currently under a Federal type of governance. You might think that having a federal type of government is better considering all three mentioned first world countries are under this system. It might be true, however, like everything around us, follows a certain rule of checks and balance. Where there is an advantage, disadvantage follows. Hence, here are the pros and cons of a Federal Type of Government.

Advantages Separation of Power

In Federalism, locals decide for themselves. There are political, social and economic problems distinct to each region. Hence, who has an absolute better position to fully grasp these problems and draw up solutions unique to these problems, other than the local representatives? For example, waste, sewerage, and drainage system in Roxas City, Capiz, is a problem that can best be tackled and solved by the local government of Roxas City, with local factors included, as opposed to someone living in the imperial Metro Manila.

Pluralism & Freedom to Form Policies

Representation is another advantageous aspect of Federalism. The central government can sometimes overlook differences of each ethnic groups and cultures and adopt sweeping policies beneficiary only to the majority. Federalism prevents this by adopting policies intended only for the subjects of the local state, may it be an entire region of Ilonggos or Bisaya. State governments have the liberty to formulate policies which may not be followed nationally or by another state.

Maximized Resources & Specialization

The burden of a heavy workload will no longer be shouldered by the central government. Instead, the division of labor between the central and the state governments will lead to optimum utilization of resources. The national government can focus more on foreign policy and defense of the country, while the provincial government can cater to the local needs.

Federalism no doubt has many positives, however, some political scientists are adamant to fully embrace Federalism because of its disadvantages.

Disadvantages Jurisdiction Conflict

An overlapping of work and subsequent confusion regarding who is responsible for what. Where do the responsibilities of the state government start and responsibilities of the national government end?

Divisive & Spawns Regionalism instead of Nationalism

Federalism leads to unnecessary competition between different regions. Competitions will create a sense of rivalry which could further dampen the spirit of nationalism. It will give birth to selfishness and will only be concerned about their region's progress

Uneven Distribution of Wealth & Cost of Federalism

Natural resources, industries, employment opportuni!es differ from region to region. Hence, wealth and earnings will be unequally distributed. “The rich get richer, the poor get poorer.” In addi!on to that, there is a reason why Federalism has only been adopted by wealthy countries because of its expensive cost to implement.

These are just some of the general pros and cons of a Federal Type of government. The real ques!on, however, lies on you to weigh between these choices. Equally important is to always keep informed.