Constitution and Government

This essay explores the role of constitution and government in a democratic edifice. It discusses the power equation between the two bodies and their impact on democracy.

Running Head: CONSTITUTION AND GOVERNMENT
CONSTITUTION AND GOVERNMENT
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Constitution and government are the two major factors of a democratic edifice. The role
of a constitution is to control the legal framework of a country. On the other hand, the
government is entitled to manage the administrative framework with the help of the legislative
considerations. According to Klug (2015), it is essential for a better government is to respect and
abide by the laws in a democratic nation, or it would violate the basic foundation of democracy.
Based on the principles of Jean Jacques Rousseau, a decentralised power structure is important
for the republicanism in order to check the balance between administration and legislation
(Gibson, Hoffman, and Jablonski 2015). Therefore, this essay is trying to depict a power
equation between the government and the constitution as the representative of each body.
Moreover, the essay also points out the definition of the constitution at first with the purpose to
understand the motive and jurisdiction of the constitution.
According to Barendt (2017) constitution is a written form of codes or principles that
incorporate the rules for the political and social organisation. On the contrary, Szikra (2014)
argued that it was not important for the constitution to be in written format. In the case of the UK
constitution, there is no written form of regulation that connotes the constitution. Therefore,
Fishkin and Forbath (2014) define constitution as the basic principles and laws of a nation, state
or social group that determines the role and power of each individual actor of the nation in terms
of citizen, administration, legislation and judiciary. As a matter of fact, it is important for all
those actors to abide by the constitutional framework for safeguarding the strong edifice of
democracy. Due to the advent of globalisation and the rapid development in the technology the
world has become a global village. As a result of that, the paradigm of a nation which sets on the
basis of geographical boundary and geopolitical sovereignty is fading away gradually. It is also
resembled with the dynamic exposure of the constitution as well where the basic characteristics

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of a constitution have been transformed into a multi-faced notion. According to Way (2015) in
the present case scenario, the power and jurisdiction of the constitution are moving towards an
international prospect where it is important for the constitution to act domestically as well as
internationally.
As per the general features of the constitution in a democratic state, Devins (2016) stated
that there are particularly three stages lingering the basic functions of the constitution. Firstly, it
can be stated that drafting and establishing a new constitution layout is the primary task of a
constitution. This draft incorporates the rule of law, separation of powers and administrative
justice. The rule of law is identified as the mainstay of a democracy where the citizens get the
right to ventilate their grievances and expect to get justice in time. Moreover, the focus of the
rule of law is also associated with the practice of including the mass into the statecraft as
democracy is for the people, of the people and by the people (Huq 2014). On the other hand,
separation of power points out towards a balance between administration and justice. The
empirical studies have argued that it is essential for democracy to hold a separate power structure
so that the ruler or the government cannot control justice. Otherwise, it will be similar to
autocracy where justice will depend on the ruler.
Besides this, it is also important for the constitution to set some principles in order to set
up a civil society. It means any possibility of a monopolistic regime or unitary power control will
be ousted by the constitutional framework. As per the research of Croissant (2016), it can be
argued that there is an ethical concept resembled with the practice of constitutional procedure. It
is more of an ethical guidebook for the ruler or the government to administrate the country.
Therefore, the government and the people have to abide by the laws and regulation. It also has a
connection of protecting the democratic establishment by the power checks and balance where

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the administration enjoys the power of following the laws and the constitution is set to monitor
it.
From the point of view of the social protection and the interests of the mass, the
constitution also sets some important guidelines that in a democratic regime every government
has to follow. The notion of social protectionism encompasses the understanding of making a
state based on equality and justice for all rather than offering privileges to people who are in
power. In this context, the constitution plays a significant role in order to bring equal justice
irrespective of any biasness. Szikra (2014) opines that the conceptual framework of the
constitution seems more like a utopian society where everyone can fulfil their interests and live
in peace and solidarity. However, in the real world, this kind of equal advantage cannot be
established due to immense pressure from the interest groups. Countries like India where diverse
culture and prejudices are clouded politics, the constitutional practice faces a severe threat from
various section of the society.
Based on this understanding, the role of a government and its political manifestation are
supposed to be the protagonist for retaining law and order within the society. However, in the
UK constitution, the government is solely responsible for making rules and regulation. In this
context, one may think that the power of the constitution becomes irrelevant as the government
enjoys both the power to rule and enact rules. The similar situation can be seen in the case of
India and the US in to some extent. However, the role of a constitution is not so lucid and
straightforward that can challenge the steady growth of democracy. It is said that the principal
elements of democratic government are based on a division of power so that every important
body has to play a significant role. Amidst this, the constitution enjoys the responsibility of
monitoring the government activities and duty to ensure safety and security to the foundation of

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democracy. Therefore, it is obvious for the constitution to challenge the government decision and
legislative framework if it violates the democratic principles and foundation. From that point of
view, the constitution effectively restrains the government and keep the essence of democracy
continues.
Nonetheless, the lack of judgement and influence of the government often overthrow the
power and flexibility of the constitution. For example, in the Middle East countries mostly the
rule of the emperor curtails the intervention of democracy. In fact, the great powers of the world
also try to undermine the existence and relevance of the constitution. As a result of that, the
constitution becomes a puppet of the government and controlled by the national powers. For an
example, Peoples Republic of China is a socialist country where the government is supposed to
respect the existence and role of the constitution, but in reality, the constitution is a de facto
government-sponsored body. All the legal procedure and the jurisdiction bestows in the hand of
Chinese politburo. Nevertheless, this is not an example of democracy.
From that point of view, it can be argued that the presence of a constitution and its
activity to restrain the government is always possible if there is any democracy exists. Otherwise,
in other forms of statecraft, constitution enjoys a limited power to play and gradually get into the
government influence. On the contrary, there is a clear share of power between the government
and the constitution or judiciary where the government is the spokesperson of the nation and
constitution is the backbone of the government in the form of helping the government to step in
the right path of democracy.

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Reference
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Separation of Powers, pp. 275-295. Routledge, 2017.’
Croissant, Aurel. "Ways of constitution-making in Southeast Asia: Actors, interests, dynamics."
In Politics and constitutions in Southeast Asia, pp. 39-62. Routledge, 2016.
Devins, Neal. "Rethinking judicial minimalism: abortion politics, party polarization, and the
consequences of returning the Constitution to elected government." Vand. L. Rev. 69 (2016):
935.
Fishkin, Joseph, and William E. Forbath. "The Anti-Oligarchy Constitution." BUL Rev. 94
(2014): 669.
Gibson, Clark C., Barak D. Hoffman, and Ryan S. Jablonski. "Did aid promote democracy in
Africa? The role of technical assistance in Africa’s transitions." World Development 68 (2015):
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Huq, Aziz Z. "The Negotiated Structural Constitution." Colum. L. Rev. 114 (2014): 1595.'
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Africa's Post-Apartheid Constitutions." NYL Sch. L. Rev. 60 (2015): 153.
Szikra, Dorottya. "Democracy and welfare in hard times: The social policy of the Orbán
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Way, Jennifer. What is the Constitution?. The Rosen Publishing Group, Inc, 2015.