The Legislature
The legislature is the organ or arm of government that is charged
with the responsibility of law making. It can also be seen as the arm of
government made up of elected persons whose main function is to make law for
the country. The legislature is given different names in different countries,
e.g. National or State Assembly in Nigeria, Parliament in Britain, Congress in
United States etc.
Functions of the Legislature
a.
Law
Making: the
legislature performs the function of making laws that direct and guide the affairs
of the nation, and guarantee peace and progress in a country.
b.
Approval
of Appointment: the
legislature also approves the appointments made by the president or prime
minister of the country.
c.
Amendment
of the Constitution: it
is also the duty of the legislature to amend the constitution of the country
whenever it is deemed necessary.
d.
Ratification
of International Treaties: it
is the duty of the parliament to approve treaties entered into by the president
or prime minister with other countries
e.
Budget
Approval: the
legislature considers and approves the national budget prepared by the
executive. In this way, the legislature controls the running of the country.
f.
Removal
of the President: the
legislature has the power to impeach the president of a country when he is no
more abiding by the tenets of the constitution which he swore to abide and
protect.
g.
Control
of the Executive: the
legislature is also empowered to check and control the activities of the
executive organ of the government to avoid misrule.
h.
Training
of Future Leaders:
through the various activities of the legislature, it serves as an avenue for
training of a country’s future leaders.
i.
Investigative
Function: in its job of
checking the activities of other organs of government, the legislature has the
power of setting up panels to investigate the activities of any department of
government.
j.
Watchdog
over Public Finance: it
is the legislature that gives authorization to the executive for all
expenditure from the Consolidated Revenue Fund, for planning and running the
government within a fiscal year.
Types of Legislature
There are two types of legislature, they are Unicameral and
Bicameral legislatures.
Unicameral Legislature.
Unicameral legislature or Unicameralism refers to a situation where
there is only one legislative house or body that makes laws in a country. Once
a bill has been passed by the Assembly, it goes to the president directly for
his assent. Countries like Ghana, Sierra-Leone, Gambia, Kenya etc. have once
adopted unicameral legislature.
Advantages of Unicameral Legislature
i.
A
one chamber legislature is more suitable in Unitary states.
ii.
It
gives room for faster or speedy process of law making.
iii.
It
is cheaper to maintain a unicameral legislature than a bicameral legislature.
iv.
Unicameralism
avoids the squabbles (disputes) experienced in bicameralism as to which of the
houses is upper and which is lower.
v.
It
does not allow unpatriotic citizens to achieve their objective through long and
unnecessary speeches as they do when there are two chambers.
Disadvantages of Unicameral Legislature
i.
It
is an unpopular type of legislature since even the countries that adopted it
are no longer using it.
ii.
Unicameralism
does not allow bills to be properly debated before they are hastily passed.
iii.
The
executive arm can easily pocket a unicameral legislature.
iv.
It
creates room for the emergence of a dictatorial head of state because it does
not check his excesses like bicameral legislature.
v.
It
does not make for adequate representation in a country that is large with
heterogeneous people.
Bicameral Legislature
Bicameralism or bicameral legislature refers to a legislature in
which there exist two houses or bodies that make laws in a country. Before a
bill is presented to the president for his assent, it must pass through the two
houses. Many countries adopt this type of legislature more than unicameralism
because of its numerous advantages which make it more popular. It is practice
in countries like Britain, USA, Nigeria, Canada, India, Australia etc. in
Britain, these two legislative houses are called House of commons, which is the
lower house, and House of Lords, which is the upper house. In USA and Nigeria,
there are house of Representatives, known as the lower house, and the Senate,
which is the upper house.
Advantages of Bicameral Legislature.
1.
The
existence of the second house help to check and prevent hasty and
ill-considered passage of bills as is the case in unicameral legislature.
2.
The
second chamber also corrects any error and faulty legislations committed in the
first chamber.
3.
It
makes it difficult for the executive arm to dominate the legislature.
4.
The
delay of bills in the two chambers make it possible for public opinion to be
properly expressed on the issues concerned before they are passed.
5.
The
composition of the upper house enables a country to utilise the knowledge of
experienced people in law making.
6.
The
task of law making is made easier when it is shared between two houses of
parliament.
7.
It
makes for equal representation of the people in a federal state.
Disadvantages of Bicameral Legislature
1.
Bicameral
legislature leads to unnecessary rivalry as to which as to which of the two
houses is superior to the other.
2.
Bicameral
legislature causes serious delay in the process of law making because each bill
has to be passed by both houses.
3.
Public
funds are wasted in maintenance of the two chambers which are in effect doing
the same job.
4.
Membership
of the upper house could be undemocratic in some countries like Britain, where
the members of the House of Lords are appointed.
5.
It
is not good in passing bills in time of emergency because of its delay.
6.
The
second chamber (upper) may be used as a dumping ground for political rejects at
the polls if its membership is by nomination or appointment.
The Executive
The executive is the organ of government responsible for the
implementation, execution or enforcement of laws, policies and directives made
and given by the legislative arm of government. It can also be seen as the
organ of government whose duty is to carry out government decisions and enforce
its laws. The executive therefore is to ensure that the laws made in a country
are obeyed. It also submit to the legislature any changes it deems necessary to
be made in laws of the land; carry administrative duties; render services to
the people of the country etc. The executive is headed by President/Prime
minister, Governor or head of local council and assisted by ministers,
commissioners or councillors as the case may be.
Types of Executive
Single/Presidential Executive
This is the type of executive in which all executive powers of
government are vested in the hands of the president who is dully elected by the
people. The president is head of state, head of government and
commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces. In this type of executive, the cabinet
members are not members of the legislature. Countries that practice this system
include USA, Nigeria, Brazil, Tanzania etc.
Dual/Parliamentary Executive
This is the type of executive in which one person is the head of
state while another person is the head of government. The head of state may be
a monarch or a ceremonial president, while the head of government is usually
the prime minister. In parliamentary executive, all members of the executive
are also members of the legislature. Countries that practice this system
include Britain, Sweden, Belgium etc.
Collegiate Executive
This is the type of executive in which a number of people form a
council which rotates the chairmanship of the council and leadership of
government in turns among its members. This system was practiced in Togo during
Olympio’s regime. Due to its intricacies (complexities), it is not a common
form of administration.
Functions of the Executive
i.
Execution
of Laws: it is the
executive arm of government that executes or implements that laws made by the
legislature by making sure that they are obeyed.
ii.
Giving
Assent to Bills: the head of
the executive signs or gives assent to bills before they can become law.
iii.
Maintenance
of Law and Order: the
executive uses the police to maintain law and order in a country.
iv.
Formulation
of Policies: it formulates
policies that guides the general administration of the people in particular,
and as a country as a whole.
v.
Making
of Budget: the executive
prepares the total proposed financial expenditure and revenue of the government
in every new financial year.
vi.
Pardoning
of Convicts: the executive
the prerogative of mercy as granted to it by the constitution, perform crucial
judicial function of pardoning and reprieving convicted offenders in a country.
vii.
Initiation
of Bills to the Legislature: the
executive sometimes initiates and submit bills to the legislature to pass into
law for good governance of the country.
viii.
Provision
of Welfare: it is the
executive that performs the main function of government, which is provision of
welfare services to the citizens.
ix.
Control
of External Trade: it
is the executive that has the power to control what is to be imported or
exported in a country.
The Judiciary
The judiciary is the arm of government that is responsible for the
interpretation of laws and the trial of cases involving individual citizens,
organization and the state. It ensures obedience to the laws, and gives
judgement as appropriate in respect of any case brought before it. The
judiciary acts as a watchdog of the law by making sure that laws made are
obeyed, and those who refuse to obey are severely punished. The judiciary is
made up of different courts like the Supreme Court, Appeal court, High court,
Magistrate court, Customary court, Sharia court etc.
Function of Judiciary
a.
Interpretation
of Laws: the
judiciary’s primary function is to interpret laws of the land.
b.
Settlement
of Disputes: the judiciary adjudicates
in disputes between the executive and the legislature and between government
and citizens or organizations.
c.
Punishment
of law breakers: as the
watchdog of the law, the judiciary made sure that laws are obeyed and those who
refuse to obey the law are severely punished.
d.
Guardian
of the Constitution: the
judiciary guards and protects the constitution of the land from violation by
anybody no matter how highly placed.
e.
Protection
of Citizens’ Right and Liberties: the
judiciary ensures that the citizens’ rights and liberties are protected. It is
this function that made the judiciary to be seen as the last hope and defender
of the oppressed.
f.
Give
Advice to the president: it
advises the president of a country on judicial matters like prerogative of
mercy or the power to pardon criminals and political detainees.
g.
Determination
on Election Petitions: the
judiciary performs the function of hearing and determining election petitions
in order to ascertain true winners.
Problems Facing the Judiciary
a.
Inadequate
Funding: a major
problem facing the judiciary is lack of adequate funding by the executive.
b.
Poor
salaries: Poor
remuneration or salaries paid to judicial officials have been a great challenge
of the judiciary.
c.
Insufficient
number of court: Insufficient number of court is another
challenge facing the judiciary. This has led to too many cases piled up in
courts with no guarantee of getting justice.
d.
Political
Control: Political
Control of the judiciary threatens the independent of the judiciary.
e.
Executive
Control: appointment of
the head of the judiciary by the executive arm of government makes the
executive to have greater control over the judiciary.
f.
Funding: funding of the judiciary by
the executive makes the judiciary to dance to its tune- he who pays the piper,
dictates the tune.
g.
Corruption: corruption among many of the officials of the judiciary acts as a
threat to judicial performance.
