Lawmakers tackle anti-dynasty proposal in Cebu, land of political clans

CEBU, Philippines – Efforts to curb political dynasties were discussed Thursday, February 19, in a consultation held in Cebu, a place with entrenched political families, with the irony that several lawmakers pushing the reforms themselves come from the very dynasties the proposed measure seeks to regulate.

Lawmakers sought the insight of multi-sectoral communities for the passing of anti-political dynasty measures led by the House committee on suffrage and electoral reforms at the University of the Philippine in Cebu.

“What we want to provide under Section 26 of Article 2 of the Constitution is to have a legal definition, to set the parameters and the degree of consanguinity to be implemented in a way we can restrict certain families from controlling power within certain localities,” said Lanao 1st District Representative Ziaur-Rahman “Zia” Alonto Adiong, chairperson of the House committee on suffrage and electoral reforms.

Adiong, incidentally, is from a political clan that has long ruled Lanao del Sur, a province in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).

The consultation’s setting showed this paradox: Cebu and much of the Visayas remain strongholds of influential political clans, which is the very concentration of power the proposed measure seeks to regulate.

Based on data from the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ), there are more than 40 congressmen in Visayas alone with connections to powerful clans. 

In Cebu province alone, lawmakers who belong to established political clans include 1st District Representative Rhea Mae Gullas, 3rd District Representative Karen Garcia, 4th District Representative Sun Shimura, 5th District Representative Vincent Franco “Duke” Frasco, 6th District Representative Inday Daphne Lagon, 7th District Representative Patricia Calderon, and Mandaue City Lone District Representative Emmarie Mabanag Ouano-Dizon.

Cebu City 1st District Representative Rachel del Mar acknowledged during the consultation that she is from a political clan – she is the daughter of the late former lawmaker Raul Veloso del Mar.

Despite this, Del Mar is one of the principal authors of House Bill No. 874, the proposed law prohibiting the establishment of political dynasties.

Common ground needed

The results of nationwide survey conducted by Pulse Asia Research Incorporated in December 2025 showed that a small majority of adult Filipinos (54%) agreed with the passage of a law banning political dynasties. The survey results also showed that 59% of Filipino adults in the Visayas agreed with it.

Adiong said the challenge now is finding a “commonly accepted definition” of a political dynasty.

“This is the first time a committee received 24 different versions…. As a chairman, I’m having trouble trying to consolidate all these 24 [bills],” Adiong said.

According to Adiong, many versions of proposal contend with the electoral candidates’ degree of consanguinity or affinity with each other. 

As in most regions, political dynasties range from multiple family members running simultaneously to sons and daughters seeking office to succeed and “continue the legacy” of their parents.

The Visayas hosts some of the country’s oldest political dynasties like the Rama and Osmeña clan of Cebu that goes all the way back to Don Vicente Rama who was a senator in 1914 and Sergio Osmeña Sr., the country’s fourth president from 1944 to 1946. 

Separating masses from dynastic rule

For Kabataan Representative Renee Co, the growing clamor for a ban on political dynasties is an indication of a separation between families in power and the average voters, especially those who belong to the marginalized sectors.

“This means napakaraming mamamayan ang hindi actually napapakingan sa issue na ‘to if ganito ka-popular ang sentiment na anti-political dynasty pero for the longest time monopolized ng mga political dynasties ang positions of power,” Co said.

(This means that many citizens remain unheard on the issue, if the anti-political dynasty sentiment is this widespread, while political dynasties have long monopolized positions of power.)

Regletto Aldrich Imbong, UP Cebu philosophy professor, told Rappler that lawmakers now face the challenge of properly educating the public to mobilize grassroots support against efforts to keep dynastic power as the status quo.

“Dynasties would want to introduce technical terms such as fat or thin dynasties only to hide their intent to regulate but not to actually end political dynasties,” he said.

Co and Imbong said there was a need to mobilize for more public support, stating that they anticipate resistance from clans holding power against efforts to organize networks and anti-dynasty campaigns.

Imbong shared that with the Visayas being an economic center, a factor that could influence the passage of an anti-dynasty bill would be support from the business sector.

“It is to their interests that an anti-dynasty bill will be passed into a law, given how patronage politics, corruption, and incompetence — factors detrimental to the aims of business — is fundamentally tied to the problem of dynasties,” Imbong said.

On February 12, a coalition of around 31 business and advocacy groups released a joint statement to urge Congress to enact a genuine anti-political dynasty law to prevent the perpetuation of corruption and inequality.

The philosophy professor also pointed out the significance of the church in campaigns, especially after the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cebu mobilization of an anti-corruption campaign in late 2025.

“It can transform such an advocacy and a social base into a powerful anti-dynasty force. The church should then heighten interventions that will allow the public to see the connection between dynasties and corruption,” Imbong added. 

Imbong also highlighted the importance of the academe, civil society and other grassroots organizations in exposing the problematic nature of political dynasties.

“Since they will be challenging an issue that the powers-that be themselves have not only enjoyed but also worked hard to sustain, these lawmakers will be facing systemic resistance,” the UP Cebu professor said. – Rappler.com