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The Batasang Pambansa Complex, or simply the Batasan (), is the seat of the
House of Representatives of the Philippines The House of Representatives of the Philippines ( fil, Kapulungan ng mga Kinatawan ng Pilipinas, italic=unset, ''Kamara'' or ''Kamara de Representantes'' from the Spanish word ''cámara'', meaning "chamber") is the lower house of Congress, the ...
. It is located along the
Batasan Road Batasan Road (formerly and still known as IBP Road), is a six-to-ten lane circumferential highway located in the barangays of Batasan Hills, Bagong Silangan, Payatas, and Commonwealth, which are located all in Quezon City, Philippines. The roa ...
in
Batasan Hills Batasan Hills is a barangay of Quezon City, Philippines. The barangay was originally planned as the National Government Center of the Philippines. The Batasang Pambansa Complex, which sits atop the Constitution Hill, is the legislative session ...
,
Quezon City Quezon City (, ; fil, Lungsod Quezon ), also known as the City of Quezon and Q.C. (read in Filipino as Kyusi), is the most populous city in the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 2,960,048 people. It was fou ...
. The complex was initially the home of the
Batasang Pambansa The Batasang Pambansa Complex, or simply the Batasan (), is the seat of the House of Representatives of the Philippines. It is located along the Batasan Road in Batasan Hills, Quezon City. The complex was initially the home of the Batasang ...
, the former legislature of the
Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...
which was established as an interim assembly in 1978 and finally as an official body in 1984. Under the 1973
Constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When these princi ...
, it replaced the bicameral Congress of the Philippines established under the 1935 Commonwealth Constitution. When the bicameral Congress was restored in 1987, the complex was set aside as the home of the House of Representatives. The main building of the complex is still often referred to as the ''Batasang Pambansa''. The
Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the ...
, the
upper house An upper house is one of two chambers of a bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the lower house.''Bicameralism'' (1997) by George Tsebelis The house formally designated as the upper house is usually smaller and often has more restric ...
of Congress, does not meet in the Batasan, but in the
GSIS Building The GSIS Building is the headquarters of the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS), the corporation that handles social security of the employees of the government of the Philippines. Located in Pasay, it is also the seat of the Senate. O ...
across
Metro Manila Metropolitan Manila (often shortened as Metro Manila; fil, Kalakhang Maynila), officially the National Capital Region (NCR; fil, link=no, Pambansang Punong Rehiyon), is the capital region, seat of government and one of three List of metrop ...
in
Pasay Pasay, officially the City of Pasay ( fil, Lungsod ng Pasay; ), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 440,656 people. Due to its location ju ...
.


History


Construction

Following the naming of
Quezon City Quezon City (, ; fil, Lungsod Quezon ), also known as the City of Quezon and Q.C. (read in Filipino as Kyusi), is the most populous city in the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 2,960,048 people. It was fou ...
as the new
capital city A capital city or capital is the municipality holding primary status in a country, state, province, department, or other subnational entity, usually as its seat of the government. A capital is typically a city that physically encompasses the go ...
of the Philippines in 1948, a cornerstone for a Capitol building was laid on Constitution Hill, now Batasan Hills, in Quezon City on October 22, 1949.National Historical Commission of the Philippines - October 22, 1949 - The cornerstone of the Capitol Building at Constitution Hill, Quezon City, is laid.
/ref> The location was part of a larger National Government Center, which was meant to house the three branches of the Philippine government (legislative, executive, and judicial). In 1956, architect Federico S. Ilustre laid out the master plan for the location, which was set aside to be the new home of the Congress (made up of the
Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the ...
and the House of Representatives). Ilustre had also designed the buildings for the new legislative center. Public reception to the building's design was lukewarm, so a newer design by the National Planning Commission under architect Anselmo Alquinto replaced the Ilustre-designed one. By 1963, however, only the concrete foundations and steel frame were laid out. Ultimately, due to lack of funding, the Capitol was never completed. The uncompleted structure sat in the area for more than a decade before being torn down.PhilSTAR.com - SM & QC: Visions of a City
/ref> During the presidency of
Ferdinand E. Marcos Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos Sr. ( , , ; September 11, 1917 – September 28, 1989) was a Filipino politician, lawyer, dictator, and kleptocrat who was the 10th president of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He ruled under martial ...
, the plans for a legislative complex were revived. By that time, the 1973
constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When these princi ...
had replaced the bicameral Congress with the ''Batasang Pambansa'', a unicameral parliament. The new complex was accordingly designed to house only one legislative body. Felipe M. Mendoza was designated as the architect of the complex, and its surrounding area.''Arkitekturang Filipino'' - Arkitektura.ph (UAP, NCCA, B(b)AGO) - Models of the Batasang Pambansa Complex
/ref>Layout of Constitution Hill, Quezon City, by Felipe M. Mendoza
/ref> The uncompleted structure for the Capitol building was torn down to make way for the new complex. The North and South Wing Buildings were completed in December 1977. Meanwhile, the Main Building itself finally opened on May 31, 1978.PhilSTAR.com: Philippine architecture in the 1950s by Paulo Alcazaren
/ref> However, the rest of the intended government buildings and public spaces around the complex were never built. The legislative body first convened at the Main Building on June 12, 1978.House of Representatives of the Philippines - The Official Buildings of the House of Representatives - www.congress.gov.ph
/ref>


Turned over to the House of Representatives

However, under the 1987 constitution, the legislative branch again became bicameral. The numerically larger House of Representatives retained the session hall and offices of the old ''Batasang Pambansa'' on the grounds of the complex. The smaller, newly reinstated Senate returned to the original legislative building in Manila (reinstated as capital city in 1976) and held their plenary sessions there until the building was turned over to the
National Museum of the Philippines The National Museum of the Philippines ( fil, Pambansang Museo ng Pilipinas}) is an umbrella government organization that oversees a number of national museums in the Philippines including ethnographic, anthropological, archaeological, and visu ...
under the presidency of
Fidel V. Ramos Fidel Valdez Ramos (, ; March 18, 1928 – July 31, 2022), popularly known as FVR and Eddie Ramos, was a Filipino general and politician who served as the 12th president of the Philippines from 1992 to 1998. He was the only career military ...
. The Senate has since moved to the GSIS Building on reclaimed land on
Manila Bay Manila Bay ( fil, Look ng Maynila) is a natural harbor that serves the Port of Manila (on Luzon), in the Philippines. Strategically located around the capital city of the Philippines, Manila Bay facilitated commerce and trade between the Phili ...
in
Pasay Pasay, officially the City of Pasay ( fil, Lungsod ng Pasay; ), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 440,656 people. Due to its location ju ...
, holding their plenary sessions there since May 1997.


Expansion

Apart from designing the core buildings of the complex, Felipe M. Mendoza and his office also allotted a master plan for possible expansion of the complex. These included: #A Senate Building, containing the Senate Session Hall and Offices, on the open area at the eastern side of the Main Building #The Library of Congress, Museum, and Archives on the western side of the complex #Several other ancillary buildings Plans and scale models for the expansion were developed in 1978, but were not implemented. In March 2001, the Ramon V. Mitra Jr. Building was completed. Currently headquartered in the building are the Legislative Library, the Committee offices, the Reference and Research Bureau, and the Conference Rooms. The South Wing Annex Building started construction in 2008 and was inaugurated on June 29, 2010.House of Representatives of the Philippines - Press Releases: Nograles leads new House Annex inauguration - www.congress.gov.ph
/ref>


Interior


Session Hall

Members of the House of Representatives hold their
plenary session A plenary session or plenum is a session of a conference which all members of all parties are to attend. Such a session may include a broad range of content, from keynotes to panel discussions, and is not necessarily related to a specific sty ...
s at the Session Hall, located inside the Main Building. Comprising 200+ members elected by
first past the post In a first-past-the-post electoral system (FPTP or FPP), formally called single-member plurality voting (SMP) when used in single-member districts or informally choose-one voting in contrast to ranked voting, or score voting, voters cast their ...
and 50+ members elected by
closed party list Closed list describes the variant of party-list systems where voters can effectively only vote for political parties as a whole; thus they have no influence on the party-supplied order in which party candidates are elected. If voters had some inf ...
, the legislators debate economic, social and other issues inside the complex. The Session Hall is also used for joint sessions of the Congress of the Philippines, such as election results, confirmation meetings, and addresses by the
President of the Philippines The president of the Philippines ( fil, Pangulo ng Pilipinas, sometimes referred to as ''Presidente ng Pilipinas'') is the head of state, head of government and chief executive of the Philippines. The president leads the executive branch of t ...
or other guests of honor. The President's annual State of the Nation Address delivered to a joint session of Congress is one example of such a speech. The Session Hall has a seating capacity for about 1,500 people. In 2022, the session hall was redesigned to accommodate up to 350 members.


House offices

Also located inside the Main Building are the offices of the
Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Philippines The speaker of the House of Representatives of the Philippines ( fil, Ispiker ng Kapulungan ng mga Kinatawan ng Pilipinas), more popularly known as the House speaker, is the presiding officer and the highest-ranking official of the lower house ...
and the Deputy Speakers. Two executive lounges can also be found there. The offices of House members are found in the North Wing and South Wing Buildings.


Exterior


Grounds

The complex is composed of five main structures and has a total area of 16 hectares. The Main Building is the central feature of the complex, and is bounded by the other buildings. The buildings include: * Main Building * North Wing Building * South Wing Building * Ramon V. Mitra Jr. Building * South Wing Annex Building


Other facilities

Aside from the offices of the House, the facilities at the Batasang Pambansa include a medical and dental clinic, two banks, a post office, two telegraph offices, two motor pools, a fire station, a gas station, security barracks for the marines, parking space for 300 cars and a police detachment. It also includes recreational facilities like the tennis and basketball courts, a gym and fitness center, a day care center, and a clubhouse and fast food center.


Security

On November 13, 2007, an
explosion An explosion is a rapid expansion in volume associated with an extreme outward release of energy, usually with the generation of high temperatures and release of high-pressure gases. Supersonic explosions created by high explosives are known ...
occurred on the south wing of the complex killing four people and injuring six more. Three of the victims were legislators.


References


External links


House of Representatives of the Philippines - The Official Buildings of the House of Representatives

House of Representatives of the Philippines - A Look Inside the House of Representatives Complex
{{Coord, 14, 41, 35.93, N, 121, 5, 39.83, E, display=title Buildings and structures completed in 1978 1978 establishments in the Philippines Government buildings in the Philippines Buildings and structures in Quezon City Legislative buildings Seats of national legislatures House of Representatives of the Philippines