Submitted By:

Name: Muhammad Adnan Khan

Roll No: 2158
Section: B3
Submitted To:
Sir Manzoor Elahi
QUESTION NO 1

DEFINATION

The term ‘legislature’ is a generic term can be defined as a body which legislates. The term ‘
Legg means law and “lature’ the spot or place and etymologically Legislature means the
place for law-making. Another term, which is considered as a synonym of Legislature, is
‘Parliament.’ This word stands derived from the French word ‘Parley’ which is indicative of
‘talk’ or to debate and deliberate.

In this way, we could say ‘Parliament’ means to be the place where deliberations are held.
Combining these perspectives, we could say Legislature or Parliament is that branch of the
government which carries out the function of law-making through deliberations.

The legislature passes the laws of the government. It is the agency which has the
responsibility to generate the will of the state and protect it with legal authority and power. In
other words, the legislature is that organ of the government which formulates laws.
Legislature appreciates a very special and important place in every democratic state. It is the
gathering of the chosen representatives of the people and represents national public opinion
and power of the people.

Organs of the Government

A Constitution establishes the regulatory framework for political activity and the governance
process in a state. One of the matters it does is to establish organs of government, outline
their features and specify their powers for the discharge of these features. There are three
organs of the government.
• Legislature
• Executive
• Judiciary

Legislature
Body of politicians in a state who makes and changes the law is called legislature.

• Functions
Functions performed by legislature are discussed below:
• Legislation
Forming and enacting laws polices in a state by means of legislature is known as Legislation.
Legislature confirms new laws and amends previous ones. New amendments and laws
presented before legislature as bill, after attention its majority passes that bill.

• Financial Functions
Legislature is the caretaker of the accounts of a state. It passes the financial plan for the state
for coming year. It likewise supports the inconvenience, or cancelation or assortment of any
expense.

• Administrative Functions
The legislature controls the executive, particularly in the cabinet or parliament type of
government. Executive is answerable before the legislature. The governing body has the
ability to evacuate the executive by passing a demonstration of general disapproval or by
dismissing a strategy or budget plan or law of the executive.

• Amendment of the Constitution

Parliament has the power to amend the constitution partly or wholly, even the constitution of
the state is written and rigid, like constitution of Pakistan.

• Organization of the Legislature

There can be two sorts of legislature. One is unicameralism and other is bicameralism. In
bicameralism there is one popular elected chamber, for example lower house, and other is
upper house. Following considerations help to decide either state ought to be unicameral or
bicameral:

• A National Representative Body

A legislature ought to be so composed as to represent and mirror all areas and interests in the
country. The strategy for portrayal ought to be genuinely national.

• Good Legislative Procedure

There ought to be no hustle in making laws. The legislature ought to be so sorted out and
pass a bill after deep thought and conversation.

• Structure of Legislatures
The quantity of people in a governing body ought to be sufficient to represent all important
sections, interests and classes in the country. On the off chance that the number of inhabitants
in a state is huge, at that point there ought to be a bicameral governing body, yet on the off
chance that the population is small, at that point unicameral assembly will be progressively
reasonable.

• Oversight Functions:
The Legislature’s oversight powers are contained in Sections 82-89 of the Nigerian
constitution with regard to the National Assembly, and 120-128 with regard to the state
Houses of Assembly, i.e. supervising the other arms of government to guarantee that they
implement government policies and programmes as contained in the Nigerian Annual
Appropriation Act or Law of Government.

• Judicial Functions:
It is standard to give some judicial power to the legislature. Usually, the legislature is
assigned to act as a court of impeachment i.e. as an investigating court for trying high public
officials on charges of treason, misdemeanour and high crimes and eliminate them from
office. It also has the power to pass a resolution for the removal of Judges of the Supreme
Court and of the High Court’s on the ground of misbehaviour or incapacity.

• Ventilation of Grievances:
A legislature acts as the highest forum for ventilation of public grievances against the
executive. Besides representing every interest and shade of opinion, the legislature acts as the
national forum for expressing public opinion, public sentiments and public aspirations.
Parliamentary or house debates and discussions throw a flood light over different issues of
public importance. Representation is the function of protecting the interest of the constituents
or people represented by being their eyes, ears and voice in governance.
• Deliberative Functions:
To deliberate upon matters of national importance, public issues, problems and needs is a
sifnificant function of a modern legislature. Through this function, the legislature reflects the
public opinion over different issues. The debates held in the assembly have a great educative
value for the people.

• Types of Legislature

• Bicameralism
In bicameralism there is one well known chosen chamber for example lower house or First
chamber and other is upper house or second chamber.

• Unicameralism
A unicameral council is an assembly which comprises of one chamber or house. It is the
system usually in small countries that is unitary frameworks of government

• Direct Legislation
In direct legislature, people have the right to directly select policy initiatives. The reasons for
the direct legislature are suspicion of legislature and abhorrence for the representative
democracy.
Devices of Direct Legislature
There are three devices of direct lawmaking body

• Referendum
A referendum is a direct vote wherein individuals of a nation can offer their input about a
specific proposal. By this new polices and laws are embraced by nations. Several
referendums were held in morocco which were identified with Moroccan constitution.
Protected referendums were additionally held in Egypt and Iran.

• Plebiscite
It's anything but a referendum. It is an inquiry to cast a ballot from the administration to
nationality or minority gathering to decide their political fate. UNO announced that a
plebiscite ought to be held so as to recognize the assessment of Indian involved Kashmir
however in the wake of foreseeing the outcomes, India didn't allow it to occur.

• Initiative :The initiative procedure permits residents to propose another resolution or

established alteration. There are two kinds of initiative:

• Direct Activity: In direct initiative the new proposed measure is put legitimately to
open vote.

• Indirect Activity: In roundabout initiative, administrators initially propose the new

law to law-making body and afterward submits it to famous vote.

Merits of Referendum and Initiative

• They are Based on the Sovereignty of the People

Present day democracy is a backhanded vote based system as indicated by the meaning of
which a body is made in the middle of the individuals and the administration who represents
general society and furthermore their words and conclusions. The answer for this Issue is
there devices of direct legislation, for example, referendum, initiative and plebiscite.

• They Encourage Respect for Laws

In a referendum and initiative the laws are made by the individuals themselves and they will
just make those laws or implement those laws which will encourage or benefit them in any
capacity.

• They Avoid the Defects of the Legislative Bodies

As indicated by Lord Bryce, “direct legislation is a useful link between the people and the
legislature as it helps the legislature to keep in touch with the people at other times than at
general elections and in some respects a better touch, for it gives the voters an opportunity of
declaring their views on serious issues apart from the destructive or distorting influence of
any party”.. The current Legislative system is degenerate as it is constrained by or ruled by
the gathering managers and the exclusive classes and follows their requests as opposed to
following and working as indicated by the standards educated by the constitution.

• Direct Legislation is a Good Political Education of the People

As the individuals themselves are the legislators and to cause laws they too must know about
the open issues and need to take part in them also and in light of the fact that they make and
reject the laws under no commanding power yet their unrestrained choice, they must be
progressively cautious While making them in such a case that they don't complete this
undertaking with extraordinary consideration, they will wind up living and adhering to the
laws which doesn't profit them in any capacity. This strategy invigorates their awareness of
other's expectations and nationalism.

• It is a Good Safety Value and a Safeguard Against Revolutionary Violence

If the people want to change any law or amend the constitution they can do it very easily and
without any violence because they have the right to do so and they don’t need to elect a
majority party to represent them. On the other hand people will not have to change any law
because they themselves will have made the laws.

Conclusion
Keeping in view the contentions for bicameralism, we may reason that, as Leacock puts it,
"of all the implies that have been utilized to make sure about in crafted by enactment a due
measure of caution and reflection the most significant is the division of the law-making body
into two chambers". Another Political Specialist has disfavoured unicameralism. He says that
the types of government that are conceivable among humankind, there is none which is
probably going to be more awful than the government of the single eminent law based
chamber. This is the reason Sir Marriot opines that the experience of history is supportive of
a bicameral framework. More noteworthy number of states on the planet today have
bicameral legislatures than unicameral legislatures.
QUESTION 2

THE ROLE OF PUBLIC OPINION IN THE

GOVERNANCE OFA DEMOCRATIC STATE

INTRODUCTION
Public opinion is critical for democracy. It establishes a basis for the expression of the will of
the public. An educated public could serve as a precursor to effective public participation and
accountability. However the role of public opinion in the administration of a state relay upon
the degree into which it is expressed by the public and taken into account by the authorities.
In a democracy, the government is expected to respect and take the desires of the people into
account. Public would allude their perspectives to be taken into account in the processes of
policy making and implementation. In order to facilitate the role of public opinion in a
democracy, adequate phenomenon should exist to ensure that the public is able to express its
will. The framework of the law ought to accommodate the freedom of expression.
Here it is argued that public opinion is essential for good governance and the endurance of
democracy and therefore it should be taken into account in the processes of policy making
and implementation.

THE CONCEPT OF PUBLIC OPINION

A public opinion is a perspective shared by numerous people related to a topic of general,

political and social significance. Additionally it is interesting to note that there is no single
public opinion, because there is no single public since each issue creates its own public, and
individuals have overlapping membership with several publics at any one time.

The collective individual opinions has been defined as an aggregate of all individual opinions
concerning a specific subject. In a democracy dissenting opinions are as worthy and
necessary as those supporting consensus, otherwise the tyranny of the majority may be
endanger.
CHARACTERISTICS OF PUBLIC OPINION
• Living Issues Of Politics
Public opinion is always about politics in this state, which separates the people into different
groups or parties with contrast opinions. They take care of matters which are controversial or
debatable in the society.
• Non Identifiable Group
For opinions to be ‘public', it is not essential for the people to be in face-to-face contact with
each other. What is essential is that they hold the same opinion, even though they do not have
any acquaintance with each other. The opinion is held by a collection of people connected by
common opinions or will.
Widely-held opinions:
As we have said above, public opinion is not necessarily majority opinion or unanimous
opinion. Minority opinion may carry more weight, if it is expressed effectively on ocassion
when the rest of the people are partitioned or apathetic towards the particular issue in
question.

Pooling of differing opinions:

Arithmetic of public opinion is very weird. It is not the aggregate of all the opinions. Some
people are not interested and apathetic to political issues and have no opinion. Others hold
widely different opinions, some hold opinions more firmly and constantly, while others not
so. But no opinion is held the equivalent permanently. We do not hold opinions on the same
issue. There are as many “publics” as there are opinions. However, out of this welter of
opinions may emerge a public opinion on an issue, which affect or particularly interest the
people.

Intensity of opinions:
The question is: Which of the contrasting opinions arise to become the public opinion? It
relays upon the intensity of the opinions held by different groups or “publics”. If a group of
people holds opinion more seriously and strongly than another group, it will become public
opinion, despite the fact that it may be a smaller group than the other. Public opinion is the
opinion of the dominant group in the society, regardless of whether it is due to wealth,
education, official position, prestige or influence. Generally, more weight is offered to
express opinions than to unexpressed ones.

Informed opinion:
Generally more consideration is given to the educated ones rather than uninformed opinion.
This is the reason why the perspectives of the elite group or groups influence and form public
opinion more effectively than those of the ordinary people. It is because of their particular
abilities, education, organisation and experience.

Continuity and Change in Public Opinion:

Public opinion may change from time to time, or may continue to be the same. More often
than not, public opinion tends to persist over time. But conditions may emerge in which it
might change. The elements of persistence, continuity and stability of public opinion or of its
change and transformation are religion, philosophy, patriotism, racialism, as well as
modernity, rationality, secularism, science and innovation, education, industrial development,
national interests, and individual’s character and personality. On the whole, religion,
ideology, patriotism, and racialism tend to make public opinion more stable and persistent,
while modernity, rationality, secularism, science and technology, industrial development,
urbanization and education tend to change it. If the change factors are more prevailing or
dominant in the society, public opinion will tend to change rapidly and continuously. But if
the stability and continuity factors are more prevailing, it will continue to be the same.

LEGISLATIVE AND POLICY CONTEXT OF PUBLIC OPINION

• In order to empower the government to know the what people desire and so that it
could be considered in the policy making process, there should be enough open doors for the
society to make their will known to the authorities. Therefore, for policy makers and
authorities to really be receptive to public needs, there should be a system through which the
public can express its opinion.
Freedom of expression plays an important role in policy making. The media, prominent
individuals, ideological groups, and political parties utilize it to influence public opinion
about specific issues, whereas parties, gatherings and interest groups that opposes the
government of the day may use their freedom of expression to criticise public policies.

REINFORCING AND REVIVING DEMOCRACY

One of the building blocks of democracy comprises of the opinions and attitudes of the
people. Public opinion reinforces and revives democracy since it contributes towards
authenticity and stability of the democratic process. An educated public plays an essential
role in strengthening democracy.

About all governments and majority politicians treat public opinion as a mighty force. This is
with regards to the fact that although the relationship between public opinion and policy
actions is neither simple nor direct; policy makers do not seem unaffected in their choices by
public opinion. Although, standardly speaking, government should listen to public opinion as
a guide to policy making, this does not infer that people should always get what they state
they want.
Democracy is built on the assumption that government will hear out to the expressed will of
the people and react to it .
Unless the opinions of the people are sent to and received by the nation’s political leaders,
public opinion has little significance. Subsequently, for public opinion to have an impact it
must be expressed. This has implications for public participation, because if it is weak, public
opinions may not be communicated. The common method of expressing public opinion is
voting in elections.

In between the elections, in a democratic state, there ought to be a system of keeping those in
power educated about the desire of those who elected them. This will contribute towards
ensuring that the necessities and aspirations of the people are taken into consideration during
the policy-making and implementation processes. Hence there ought to be constant
interaction between the governors and the governed. Therefore, a situation that encourages or
allows participation in general elections only is not entirely democratic; despite the fact, that
the results of a general election may clearly specify who should govern, they do not
sufficiently address the subject of how the government should govern. In fact, public
participation in decision making is basic for a democratic government.
71

It should be noted that the encouragement of support for democracy and the institutions that
offer expression to it is not limited to voting in an election, but is also dependent upon regular
interaction between the public and such establishments. The encouragement of collaboration
is significant, as interaction of this sort provides a basis not only for the long-term democratic
stability of a State, but also for its future economic stability and prosperity.

AVOIDING AND ELIMINATING APATHY

People should be encouraged to take interests in public affairs in order to avoid apathy and
diminish or eliminate it when it as of now exist. Voter trainings, political campaigns, and the
advertisement of government projects should be utilized effectively. Dissemination of
information that not only energises public participation in public affairs but also indicates its
significance should be an ongoing exercise since apathy has negative implications for
democracy.

PROMOTING RESPONSIVENESS TO PUBLIC NEEDS

There are three significant requisites to get the responsiveness of policy makers and public
officials to public needs:
• The public should communicate its needs;
• There ought to be sufficient perception of the expressed public needs by policy
makers and/or public officials (Kaufmann 1991:75); and
• Policy makers and public officials should not only have the will to consider expressed
public needs into account during policy-making and implementation processes, but should
actually take them into account.
Democracy is built on the assumption that government elites will listen to the expressed will
of the people and react to it.

Therefore, unless the opinions of the people are sent to and received by the nation’s political
leaders, public opinion has little significance. Hence for public opinion, to have any impact,
must be communicated. Through different techniques of public participation which include
letter writing, voting in elections, direct contacting, public hearings and public
demonstrations; public opinion can be expressed.

FACILITATING THE PROCESS OF POLICY MAKING AND IMPLEMENTATION

Public participation paves the path for the process of policy implementation to run easily.
Policy implementation needs the support of the community, since policies are intended to be
implemented in communities. Public participation encourages a sense of ownership and
commitment to the result of the process. Therefore, public participation can add to policy
implementation by building support and eliminating opposition. Additionally, it could save
expenses by minimising or eliminating the need for policy implementation to be policed.

Opinion Surveys

Survey questionnaires are generally used to ask specific questions to a population sample that
is statistically illustrative of all the members of the public in order to discover what the
attitudes and opinions of the public are about a specific issue. Such surveys could be utilized
to make organizers aware of public preferences. The consequences of public opinion polls
provide an input into the political system. They could be utilized to make public officials
aware of public desire for future activities or public evaluation of a government action that
has taken place.

Public Hearings
Public hearings provide an opportunity for residents to express their perspectives and also to
question policy makers regarding certain issues. They are usually held when major projects
are going to be implemented, or prior to the enactment of legislation. In such cases they offer
the public an opportunity to comment before the actual implementation of the programme or
the enactment of legislation. For public hearings to be effective, members of the public ought
to have background information that enables them to offer meaningful remarks about the
matter of concern. Moreover, the timing of the hearings should be such that the citizens’
comments could still divert the course of action.

Radio and Television Talk Shows

The communications media have an important role, both in spreading information upon
which opinions and attitudes may be formed, and in constructively adding to the moulding of
those attitudes and opinions. Radio and television talk shows contain programmes in which
members of the public participate directly, while in the studio or through the use of a
telephone network, in discussing of a specific issue. Political office-bearers are sometimes
invited to these shows in order to explain certain issues, answer questions, and listen to the
views of the public. While members in radio and television talk shows may not be adequately
representative of the public, they could nevertheless point the public opinion regarding the
matter of concern.

Referenda
A referendum gives national citizens an opportunity to inform policy makers about the
popular view on a controversial issue. nonetheless, referenda are generally suitable for single
issues or a few of issues. The results of a referendum should be taken into consideration,
when a policy relating to the issue for which a referendum has been done, is created.

Role Of Public Opinion In Non-Democratic States

In non-democratic state public has neither the right to express their will and desires nor to
demand their rights. Additionally, the public cannot raise their voices against the terror of the
state, which is considered a high treason.

However, no government can last for long if it doesn’t have the support of public.

The public opinion has great power, it can enforce its will against the government, no matter
how harsh the circumstances are, when followed through proper channel. Example. Mahatma
Ghandi declared a non-violent protest of being starved to death with public behind him to
support, pressured British government to leave subcontinent.

CONCLUSION
Public opinion is one of the main and significant pillars of democracy. However, to make an
impact in governance, it should be expressed. The Constitutional right of the freedom of
expression should be protected in any case otherwise apathy, which is detrimental to
democracy, may develop.
An educated public opinion could lead to effective public participation. Information about the
political system and governance establishes a basis upon which citizens can request
accountability from the government. Hence it is significant for the citizens to be officially
instructed and awarded about issues of national significance. An educated citizen is probably
going to make informed decisions which may lead to constructive input in governance.
Public opinion strengthens democracy as it plays a vital role towards the fortification and
revival of democracy. The right of the members of the public to taking part in the democratic
process should not be limited to voting in elections. An educated public opinion comprises a
vital basis for meaningful input into the policy-making and implementation processes. The
mass media, public hearings and referenda play an imperative role in political
communication. They fill in as instruments through which public opinion is expressed.
In order to encourage government’s responsiveness to public needs, public opinion about
issues of political significance should be monitored. In this regard the opinion surveys play a
essential role and therefore they should be conducted regularly.