UP CIRCLE OF ADMINISTRATORS

NATIONAL COLLEGE OF PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION AND GOVERNANCE

UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES
DILIMAN, QUEZON CITY

CONSTITUTION

Promulgated: February 24, 1992

Revised: 1st Semester, A.Y. 2006-2007
Revised: 2nd Semester, A.Y. 2010-2011
Revised: 2nd Semester, A.Y. 2014-2015
 CONSTITUTION

PREAMBLE

We, the members of the University of the Philippines Circleof Administrators, recognizing the
relevance of Academic Excellence, Social Commitment, Solidarity, and Human Resource Development in
shaping a responsible and accountable public servant, upholding academic freedom and endeavoring
the development of mans natural talents, establishing and maintaining an organization embodying our
ideals and aspirations, do ordain and promulgate this Constitution and Bylaws.

ARTICLE I NAME AND DOMICILE

SEC. 1 This organization shall be known as the UP Circle of Administrators or UP CIRCA.

SEC. 2 UP CIRCA shall principally reside at the National College of Public Administration and
Governance, University of the Philippines Diliman, Quezon City.

ARTICLE II DECLARATION OF PRINCIPLES

SEC. 1 UP CIRCA aims to shape Public Administration students to become responsible and
accountable public servants. To attain this goal, UP CIRCA commits to the following
principles:

SEC. 2 Academic Excellence

a. To promote public administration discussions on prevailing relevant national issues;

b. To lead every member in grasping the deeper nature of public administration;
c. To arm each member with critical awareness in expressing valid and sound arguments.

SEC. 3 Social Commitment

a. To help in the search for solutions regarding problems and other concerns besetting the
College, the University, and the Country;
b. To coordinate and cooperate with other existing organizations and political formations
in undertaking programs and projects which are socially relevant and beneficial.
c. To encourage proactive student participation in college, university, and national
advocacies and undertakings.

SEC. 4 Solidarity
 a. To promote unity, cooperation, camaraderie, and create an environment wherein
students of diverse personalities can work together towards a common purpose.
b. To foster a bond of brotherhood and sisterhood that would go beyond years spent in
college.

SEC. 5 Human Resource Development

a. To create venues to discover and develop the rich and yet untapped skills and talents of
Public Administration students;
b. To initiate activities that would provide opportunities for members to have worthwhile
and memorable college experiences;
c. To recognize the exemplary performance of students, both academic and extra-
curricular.

ARTICLE III MEMBERSHIP

SEC. 1 Any bona fide undergraduate student of the National College of Public Administration
and Governance of the University of the Philippines, who is willing to adhere to the
principles and ideals of UP CIRCA can be a member, Provided That:

a. He or She is not a member of any student organization with the same nature as UP
CIRCA based either in the college.
b. He or She accepts this Constitution and Bylaws and is willing to participate in the
undertakings of UP CIRCA.
c. He or She is ready to comply with the duties and responsibilities of a member; and
d. He or She is able to fulfill all the requirements for membership which will be decided by
the Human Resource Management Committee Director with the approval of the Vice
President for Internals.

SEC. 2 For the purpose of defining the rights and responsibilities, membership in UP CIRCA
shall be classified as follows:

a. Regular or Active Member - a member who participates in organizational activities and

renews for membership.
b. Inactive Member - a member who files for inactivity and whose application is duly
approved by the Vice President for Internals; a member who is incapable of
participating in organizational activities; a member who gives up his or her rights and
privileges for the semester; and a member who did not pay his/her reaffirmation fee.
 c. Probationary Member a member who did not apply for inactivity and failed to attend
the required number of events as decided by the Executive Committee with the
approval of the general assembly.
d. Suspended Member a member who was unable to lift his/ her probationary status; a
member whose rights and privileges have been removed for a specific period.
e. Expelled Member a member who has been officially removed from the roll of
members as a penalty for a violation of this Constitution and Bylaws.
f. Alumnus/Alumna - a member who has already graduated from his/her bachelors
degree in Public Administration.

SEC. 3 Membership in UP CIRCA may be terminated through the following action:

a. Resignation, by addressing the General Assembly in writing;

b. Expulsion; or
c. When a member transfers to another college, campus, or institution.

SEC. 4 Unless a member filed for inactivity or sooner terminated by the General Assembly as
penalty, membership in UP CIRCA shall be for a period of one (1) semester, renewable
for subsequent semesters.

SEC. 5 A member or officer may receive disciplinary action from the General Assembly for the
following offenses, Provided That, such errant member or officer is given due process:

a. Culpable violation of this Constitution and other organizational policies;

b. Gross neglect of duties as member or officer;
c. Malversation of organizational funds; and
d. Other acts detrimental and injurious to the unity, reputation or interests of UP CIRCA.

SEC. 6 The corresponding penalties for the offenses defined above shall be as follows:

a. Impeachment of an officer, without prejudice to further disciplinary action;

b. Suspension of a member or officer for one (1) or two (2) semesters; or
c. Expulsion ab initio.

SEC. 7 No undergraduate student shall be allowed to apply and thus shall not be accepted in
UP CIRCA when he/she is running for any position in the NCPAG Student Council at the
same time when the application process of UP CIRCA is ongoing.

ARTICLE IV DISCIPLINARY ACTION

SEC. 1 Probation
 a. Probationary members should be notified of their status at the start of the semester.
b. To lift probationary status, the member shall attend the required number of events to
be set by the Executive Committee.
c. Lifting of probationary status is only up to mid-semester.
SEC. 2 Suspension

a. Grounds for suspension

i. Not being able to lift probationary status.
ii. Gross neglect of duties as member or officer;
iii. Malversation of organizational funds

b. Suspension status is automatically lifted at the start of the next semester.

SEC. 3 Expulsion

a. Any regular or active member can file an expulsion case against any member.
b. Grounds for expulsion
i. Not being able to lift probationary status.
ii. Culpable violation of this Constitution and other organizational policies.
iii. Other acts detrimental and injurious to the unity, reputation or interests of
UP CIRCA
iv. A member who is suspended more than once.
v. An absolute majority of all regular or active members of the general
assembly is needed to expel a member or officer.

SEC. 4 Impeachment

a. Grounds for Impeachment

i. Gross neglect of duties and responsibilities as an officer.
ii. Not being able to attend the majority of meetings at the start of his/her
term.
iii. Violation of provisions in Section 3, Article X of this Constitution.

ARTICLE V RIGHTS AND DUTIES OF MEMBERS

SEC. 1 Regular Members of UP CIRCA shall have the following rights and privileges:

a. To participate in all organizational activities;

b. To know and discuss freely all the issues pertaining to the organization;
c. To register dissenting opinions;
d. To be fully informed of all the activities, plans of the organization, and its use of funds
and properties;
 e. To avail himself of the services, facilities, and other benefits of the organization;
f. To vote for any elective position in UP CIRCA;
g. To be voted upon, if qualified for any elective position;
h. To initiate impeachment proceedings against any officer of UP CIRCA before the General
Assembly;
i. To file inactivity or resignation from position or membership in the organization; and
j. To inspect records of the meetings and financial accounting of the organization.

SEC. 3 Members of UP CIRCA shall have the following duties and responsibilities:

a. To uphold this Constitution and the principles governing the organization;

b. To keep himself fully informed of the plans, activities, and services of the organization;
c. To pursue the plans and participate actively in all organizational activities and
implementation of programs;
d. To attend general, special, and emergency meetings, Provided That, in cases of
unavoidable absence, due notice shall be presented to the his/her respective Division
Chief on or before the day of the meeting;
e. To join one standing division;
f. To help recruit qualified applicants; and
g. To pay dues and fines promptly.

ARTICLE VI ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE

SEC. 1 The general assembly shall be the highest decision-making body while the executive
committee shall be the governing and administrative body of the UP CIRCA

SEC. 2 The General Assembly shall be composed of all Regular Members.

a. It shall exercise the following exclusive powers:

i. To formulate, uphold, amend, revise or repeal the decisions, declarations,
policies and positions of any of the governing bodies of UP CIRCA;
ii. To elect members of the Security Council;
iii. To approve the revision or amendment of this Constitution and Bylaws; and
iv. To enforce the penalties specified in Article IV of this Constitution; and
v. To discuss and resolve other important organizational concerns.
b. Any resolution or decision shall be set by the Executive Committee approved by the
General Assembly by a vote of at least a majority (50 per centum plus 1) of the quorum.
For this purpose, the General Assembly must have a quorum of at least two-thirds (2/3)
of all Regular Members in order to carry out any official business.
c. The General Assembly shall convene in session at least once a month, the exact
schedule of which shall be fixed by the General Assembly itself. A simple majority of the
 Executive Committee or a simple majority of the General Assembly may call special
meetings when the need arises.

SEC. 3 The Executive Committee shall be responsible for the daily operations of UP CIRCA. It
shall implement and execute the decisions, declarations, policies and positions of UP
CIRCA as promulgated by the General Assembly. It shall be composed of the President,
Vice President for Internals, Vice President for Externals, and the Directors of the
Human Resource Management Committee, the Finance and Logistics Committee, the
Publicity and Promotions Committee, the Knowledge Management Committee, and the
Ways and Means Committee.

a. In cases of force majeure, and with the consent of the General Assembly, the Executive
Committee shall exercise the exclusive power to interpret the provisions of this
Constitution and Bylaws, Provided That, Such interpretation may be subject for review,
repeal, and/or modification by the General Assembly.
b. All the members of the Executive Committee shall hold office for one academic year or
until their successors have been duly elected and qualified.
c. In order to carry out any official business, the Executive Committee must have a quorum
of at least a simple majority (50 per centum plus 1) of all its members.
d. In case of vacancy in any position due to death, incapacity, removal, or resignation, a
special election shall be immediately held to fill in the position. In case of such
vacancies, the Executive Committee shall make ad interim appointments to ensure the
proper functioning of the organization until the officer has been elected.
e. All the members of the Executive Committee shall perform such other duties and
functions as may be delegated by the General Assembly.

ARTICLE VII THE ORGANIZATION OFFICERS

SEC. 1 The President shall perform the following powers, duties, and functions:

a. To be the official head of the organization;

b. To set the agenda and preside over meetings;
c. To call emergency meetings when necessary;
d. To sign all documents to make them official;
e. In special cases of force majeure and when there is clear difficulty in convening the
governing bodies, he/she may exercise emergency decision-making powers without the
consent of the General Assembly, Provided That, such decisions conform to the policies
of the organization, or with the provisions of this Constitution and Bylaws.

SEC. 2 The Vice President for Internals shall perform the following powers, duties, and
functions:
 a. To take charge of the internal affairs of the organization;
b. To act as the over-all coordinator of the Human Resource Management Committee, the
Finance and Logistics Committee, and the Knowledge Management Committee and shall
ensure their proper functioning;
c. To serve as the organizations ex-officio secretary, and thus shall maintain and preserve
the minutes of all meetings;
d. To act as the official auditor of the organization;
e. To assume the office of the President in case of the latters death, incapacity, removal,
resignation, or absence.

SEC. 3 The Vice President for Externals shall perform the following powers, duties, and
functions:

a. To take charge of the external affairs of the organization;

b. To act as the over-all coordinator of the Publicity and Promotions Committee and the
Ways and Means Committee and shall ensure their proper functioning;
c. To be responsible for establishing linkages with other organizations in and out of the
campus;
d. To act as the organizations ex-officio liaison officer;
e. To act as the official alumni relations officer of the organization;
f. To act as UP CIRCAs official representative to the League of NCPAG Organizations
(LNO).
g. To have the power to appoint at most three (3) deputy directors who will be given
special duties relevant to the functions of the Vice President for Externals and who are
coterminous with the latter. This power to appoint comes with the power to terminate
deputy directors who are not functioning well.

SEC. 4 The Committee Directors shall perform the following powers, duties, and functions:

a. To represent their respective divisions in Executive Committee meetings;

b. To report for their divisions both in the Executive Committee and the General Assembly;
c. To coordinate with their respective Vice Presidents for the proper functioning of their
committees.
d. Each committee director can appoint at most two (2) deputy directors who are/will
be:members of their corresponding committees; assigned with specific functions
depending on the need of their committees; and coterminouswith their respective
committee directors. This power to appoint comes with the power to terminate deputy
directors who are not functioning well.
ARTICLE VIII COMMITTEE FUNCTIONS

SEC. 1 The Human Resource Management Committee shall perform the following duties and
functions:

a. To organize activities directed at recruitment and expansion;

b. To facilitate the application process;
c. To act as the screening group of the organization in accepting new members;
d. To provide venues for member development;
e. To work for any other commensurate functions that may be assigned by the Executive
Committee.

SEC. 2 The Finance and Logistics Committee shall perform the following duties and functions:

a. To act as the treasurer and disburser of funds of the organization;

b. To take charge of the collection of all the organizational dues;
c. To act as the custodian of all assets and properties of the organization;
d. To submit financial reports to the Vice President for Internals after every activity
undertaken by the organization. It shall provide and present a consolidated and audited
financial report to the general assembly at the end of each month.
e. To work for any other commensurate functions that may be assigned by the Executive
Committee.

SEC. 3 The Publicity and Promotions Committee shall perform the following duties and
functions:

a. To take charge of all social media accounts of UP CIRCA;

b. To act as the publication arm of the organization;
c. To work for any other commensurate functions that may be assigned by the Executive
Committee.

SEC. 4 The Knowledge Management Committee shall perform the following duties and
functions:

a. To provide venues for the discussion of various internal and external relevant issues;
b. To systematically gather all relevant knowledge resources;
c. To maintain an internal knowledge resource center;
d. To work for any other commensurate functions that may be assigned by the Executive
Committee.

SEC. 5 The Ways and Means Committee shall perform the following duties and functions:
 a. To plan and undertake income-generating projects;
b. To conduct marketing activities to ensure that all programs and projects of UP CIRCA are
completely funded;
c. To work for any other commensurate functions that may be assigned by the Executive
Committee.

ARTICLE IX FEES AND CONTRIBUTIONS, FEES, AND FINANCIAL TRANSACTIONS

SEC. 1 Fees And Contributions

a. The Finance and Logistics Committee through the approval of the Executive Committee
shall set all fees, payments and contributions in the organization.
b. All fees shall be audited and transparency in the disbursements of funds shall be
followed.
c. All fees and contributions shall be imposed on all regular members of the organization.

SEC. 3 Fines

b. There shall be a fine set and imposed by the Executive Committee for every absence
that cannot be possibly explained. If, however, due to a fortuitous event, any member
who was unable to attend a meeting, he or she may be exempted from paying such
fines. Fortuitous eventmeans all circumstances beyond ones control.

SEC. 4 Financial Transactions

a. Any regular member cannot borrow from the organizational fund regardless of reason
or amount.
b. All Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) for every project/event partnership shall be
submitted to the Finance and Logistics Committee Director.

ARTICLE X ELECTIONS

SEC. 1 The Election Board shall be composed of at least three graduating active members.

a. The graduating members of the Executive Committee are automatically members of the
Election Board.
b. Applications for the Election Board shall be opened to any graduating active members to
be approved by the graduating members of the Executive Committee. In case that there
is no graduating member of the Executive Committee, the general assembly shall be the
one to approve the applications.
SEC. 2 Any active member who has completed at least one (1) month tenure in UP CIRCA can
be nominated and elected as part of the new roster of officers.

SEC. 3 Once a member is elected into position, he/she must not engage in the following
activities of his/her political organization, if any:

a. promotion of organization;
b. involvement in the buddy system of the application process;
c. partaking in any election campaign activities, and
d. membership in any organizing committee.

ARTICLE XI ADVISERS

SEC. 1 The Adviser/s of UP CIRCA shall be selected by the Executive Committee among the
faculty members of the National College of Public Administration and Governance.

SEC. 2 The Adviser/s shall be informed and consulted about the activities undertaken by the
organization.

SEC. 3 The Adviser/s shall inform the organization about administrative directives and circulars
that may affect the undertakings of the organization.

SEC. 4 The Adviser/s shall have the right to suggest or propose resolutions and/or actions on
any discussion of policy, which in their judgment is prejudicial to the organization.

SEC. 5 The Adviser/s shall serve for one academic year and may be renewed.

ARTICLE XII AMENDMENTS

SEC. 1 Any Regular Member may propose amendments or revisions to this Constitution. Upon
the approval of the proposal by the General Assembly, the Executive Committee shall
form a Constitution Commission for the purpose of introducing specific amendments or
revisions to this Constitution.

SEC. 2 This Constitution shall take effect immediately after its ratification.

SEC. 3 No amendment or revision shall be introduced to this Constitution three years after its
ratification.

SEC. 4 Any revision or amendment to this Constitution shall be approved by an absolute

majority.