Daniele Katrina Pimentel BSN NG3-01

Monarchy - a government in which the supreme power is lodged in the hands of a monarch who reigns over a state or territory, usually for life and by hereditary right; the monarch may be either a sole absolute ruler or a sovereign - such as a king, queen, or prince - with constitutionally limited authority. Powers of monarch Today, the extent of a monarch's powers varies: Absolute monarchy is a monarchical form of government where the monarch exercises ultimate governing authority as head of state and head of government, thus wielding political power over the sovereign state and its subject peoples. In an absolute monarchy, the transmission of power is two-fold; hereditary and marital. As absolute governor, the monarchs authority is not legally bound or restricted by a constitution. In an absolute monarchy, the monarch rules as an autocrat, with absolute power over the state and governmentfor example, the right to rule by decree, promulgate laws, and impose punishments. the enlightened Absolute monarchies are not of

necessarily authoritarian;

absolutists of

the Age

Enlightenment were monarchs who allowed various freedoms. Constitutional monarchy (or limited monarchy) is a form of government in which a monarch acts as head of state within the parameters of a constitution, whether it be a written, unmodified, or blended constitution. This form of government differs from absolute monarchy in which an absolute monarch serves as the source of power in the state and is not legally bound by any constitution and has the powers to regulate his or her respective government. Limited monarchy is a governmental system in which the monarch is bound by a constitution. It cannot exercise unlimited political power. Political power usually rests with an elected prime minister. Aristocracy is a form of government in which a few elite citizens rule. The term derives from the Greek aristokratia, meaning "rule of the best". In origin in Ancient Greece, it was conceived of as rule by the best qualified citizens, and contrasted

Daniele Katrina Pimentel BSN NG3-01

with monarchy. In later times, aristocracy was usually seen as rule by a privileged group (the aristocratic class), and contrasted with democracy. Oligarchy is a form of government in which most of the political power effectively rests with a small segment of society, typically the people who have the most wealth, military strength, ruthlessness or political influence. Oligarchies are often controlled by a few powerful families whose children are raised and mentored to become inheritors of power, often at some sort of expense to those governed. In contrast with aristocracy or government by the "best" this power might not always be exercised openly, with some oligarchs preferring to remain "the power behind the throne," exerting their control through economic means. Democracy is a form of government in which people are governed by their own elected representatives. It is a government of the people, for the people and by the people. In this system of government, it is the people who are supreme and sovereign. They control the government. They are free to elect a government of their own choice. Freedom of choice is the core of democracy. Direct democracy is a form of government in which people vote on policy initiatives directly, as opposed to a representative democracy in which people vote for representatives who then vote on policy initiatives. Depending on the particular system in use, it might entail passing executive decisions, making laws, directly electing or dismissing officials and conducting trials. An indirect democracy, on the other hand, uses a small group of officials to make decisions of importance on behalf of their constituents. It can best be described as a form of democracy in which the citizens elect government officials but following this election have little or no input as to governmental decisions made by those officials. Thus government officials are essentially allowed to make all decisions free from any further supervision or review by the people except by another election in which the candidate or official is directly reviewed rather than his decisions. The actual decision making process of government is always left in the hands of the government and thus it is possible the decisions remain in effect long after the government official no longer holds office.

Daniele Katrina Pimentel BSN NG3-01

In a Unitary system, the Central government or often stated as the Union government, define administrative divisions known as 'states' that would help the central government in appropriate and well dispensed governance. The doctrine that states the relation between the two is clearly established in the constitution or any charter that institutes the Union and empowers the central government to make several administrative divisions of the state. The states in a unitary system hold a considerable jurisdiction and power in accordance with the doctrines set by the parliament. Often the states also have legislative bodies that are empowered to make and pass legislation and enactments. The power of the states is curtailed by the central government and also the judicial system. Federal System of Governance As opposed to the unitary system of governance, the federal system is itself the system established by the states who come together to form the central government, central legislative body such as the parliament and the judicial system. A distinct, defining characteristic of any federal system is that the states form the central government and surrender a part of their powers and jurisdictions to the central governmental. The relation between the central government and states, and their empowerment is governed by the constitution and is administrated by the judiciary.

In case of a federal system, the citizens tend to hold citizenship in a parallel manner. In addition to that, states have a considerable power in legislature and enactments that are passed by state legislature so powerful and complex that every state has a different 'bar' exam to qualify their own lawyers. Parliamentary System 1. Intimacy between the Executive and the Legislature: Under this system there is a close relationship between the Executive and the legislature. The members of the Executive, i.e., the Prime Minister and his cabinet

Daniele Katrina Pimentel BSN NG3-01

colleagues are also the members of the legislature. They in fact enjoy the support of the majority in the legislature. Thus the Prime Minister and his cabinet can pass, amend or repeal any type of law with the support of subservient majority in the legislature. In this way, the executive and the legislative branches of the Government work in close harmony. The Executive not only runs the administration but also makes law. 2. Responsibility to the legislature: In this system, the executive is responsible and accountable to the legislature for all its acts of omission and commission. The legislature can remove a cabinet by passing a vote of no-confidence against it whenever it so desires. Moreover, the legislature exercises its control over the executive through interpellation, adjournment motions so on and so forth. 3. Gap between Practice and Theory: In a Parliamentary System, there is always a gap between law and fact. According to law, all powers of the Government are vested in the Chief Executive Head who may be President as in India or Governor General as in Canada or King or Queen as in U.K. In actual fact all his powers are exercised by the Cabinet which is created out of the majority party in the legislature. The Chief Executive Head is just an ornamental head or figure head. All real and effective authority is exercised by the Cabinet. Presidential System 1. Separation between the Executive and the Legislature: The executive and the legislative branches of the government under the system are separate and independent of each other. The Executive which generally consists of a President and a cabinet subordinate to him runs the administration of the country. It has nothing to do with law-making.

Daniele Katrina Pimentel BSN NG3-01

The President or his ministers are neither the members of the legislature nor do they enjoy any support of a majority in it. Sometimes, the President may belong to one Party and another Party may have a majority in the legislature and both may run at cross purposes. The fact is clear from the working of this system in U.S.A. 2. Presidential Executive is not responsible to the Legislature: Under this system the Executive is independent of the legislature and is not responsible to it. The President has a fixed tenure of office and cannot be removed by an adverse vote in the legislature. The ministers are appointed and dismissed by the President himself and the Legislature cannot touch them. Since none of them is a member of the Legislature, they cannot be subjected to any parliamentary criticism. 3. No Gap between Practice and Theory: Under this system, there is no such gap between law and fact. The Chief Executive head is the President in whom executive authority is vested by the constitution. He controls effectively his cabinet, which works under him and acts according to his wishes. This fact is clearly illustrated in the working of the Presidential System in the U.S.A