An Evaluation of the Effectiveness ofthe Party-List System from the 1 Ith to the 14lh Congress (1998-2010)

Abstract

Republic Act No. 7941, also known as the Party-List System Act, was created to promote proportional representation in the election of party-list representatives to the House of Representatives; which will enable Filipino citizens, belonging to the marginalized and underrepresented sectors, organizations and parties, and who lack well- defined political constituencies, to contribute to the formulation and enactment of appropriate legislation that will benefit the nation as a whole (Party-List System Act 1995). With this in mind, this paper aims to evaluate the effectiveness of party-list groups and their representatives who took office in the 11th to the 14th Congress; and to assess if the Pam-List System, since the time it was adopted, was able to uphold the purpose for which it was created.