CONSTITUTIONAL GOVERNMENT AND DEMOCRACY
CARL J. FRIEDRICH
4th ed., Blaisdell Publishing Co.: Massachusetts; 1968
Total Pages: 699
The core of modern democratic government is laid on its
constitutional basis. As constitution is the cornerstone of the aspiration of the people, people reasonably expect the constitutional mandate in their life. This book has been well-arranged to provide a detail discussion demonstrating a contingent relationship between constitution, government and democracy. As portrayed in this book, the main characteristics of modern constitutional democratic government are the protection of state from internal and external foes, separation of powers, local self-government and economic development, periodical election for the people’s representation, responsible public
administration, active parliament, efficient and effective judiciary. In modern democratic states, to ensure better performance and afford people the maximum facilities of the democratic governance, the entire states power and responsibilities are categorized into three: executive, legislature and Judiciary. Well functioning public administration is the key component in the democratic government. This power to run the state administration effectively is vested upon the executive. Parliament is the principal law making body. Considering the necessities and circumstances, it enacts relevant legislation for the country. Orderly society is an essential prerequisite for every democratic state. Accordingly, Judiciary apply the law of the land to the concerned offender and help mitigating crimes and keep the society safe and secured. As constitution mirrors the expectation of the people, it rightly inserts the INS and out for the overall development of the country. Undeniably, No nation can imagine reaping any sort of benefit from its governance portfolio, unless it acquires economic independence. So, constitutional government outlines for the economic development of the country. Democratic government also allow people from all walks of life to invoke the benefits of state machinery. For this, it introduces local self-government to facilitate people in democratic governance by participating in the governance mechanism.