How have entrenched oligarchic and patrimonial systems in the Philippines prevented the creation of a truly democratic government and perpetuated unequal economic distribution? The nature of the Philippines’s political system is such that vested interests have guided policy favorable to a minority of wealthy families. As a result of political and economic exclusion of the majority of the population, there is great wealth inequality and minimal economic growth. This article will address two primary questions: 1) How and why have oligarchy and patrimonialism become institutionalized in the Philippines’s political process? and 2) What are the implications of this type of governance on the economic growth of the country and for the rural poor?