The Constitution as the Supreme Law of the Land - Article Example

The constitution, in most nation s is considered as the supreme law of the land. It is that piece of document wherein all laws must conform. In a civilized society, people somewhat surrender part of their freedom to the state. This explains the reason why we have to follow rules and regulations, respect laws. This surrender of freedom, gives order to the overall welfare of the state. Citizens expect the government to seek for the common good. In this sense, the constitution formalizes the "rules of the game". It manages the relationship between the government and its people. The constitution, legitimizes state power in such a way that it gives the government guidelines on how to instill order in a certain society. It also restraints power, because for most democratic states, the existence of the government is basically to protect the freedom and dignity of its people. It is meant to "manage" a relationship filled with respect and honor towards each other. It also tries to manage the affairs of its people- politically, morally, ethically. These are the progressive and the conservative views which basically drew the divide between understanding of the notion of morality as either purely personal, (progressive) or one that dictates that there has to be one true morality to be followed, (conservative). In this paper, this writer would like to discuss, how the existence of constitution ensures the existence of "balance" in every society. By balance, it means there is equal relationship between practice of power and restraint. That both are equally needed, to make things work in proper rhythm. The constitution, which provides for the underlying values, aspirations and desires of its people becomes a powerful tool in understanding a living society. Oftentimes, this document is shaped through the hardships, victories, colonizers that a country has encountered. According to Black's Law dictionary, "the fundamental law, written or unwritten, that establishes the character of a government by defining the basic principles to which a society must conform; by describing the organization of the government and regulation, distribution, and limitations on the functions of different government departments; and by prescribing the extent and manner of the exercise of its sovereign powers. A legislative charter by which a government or group derives its authority to act." A constitution may be defined as an organization of offices in a state, by which the method of their distribution is fixed, the sovereign authority is determined, and the nature of the end to be pursued by the association and all its members is prescribed. Laws, as distinct from the frame of the constitution, are the rules by which the magistrates should exercise their powers, and should watch and check transgressors. Constitutions, which can be written or unwritten, function as dynamic body of legal custom, tradition and opinion. Their evolution generally involves changes in judicial interpretation or in themselves, the latter usually through a process called amendment. Sometimes different jurisprudence, or national revolution call for the reinterpretation of a constitution. Amendment of a constitution is usually designed to be a rigid and difficult process in order to give the constitution greater stability and authority. On the other hand, if a constitution is extremely difficult to amend or adjust, it might be too inflexible to survive over time. The British Constitution is unwritten, unlike the constitution in America, and, as such, is referred to as an uncodified constitution. The British Constitution can be found in a variety of documents. Supporters of our constitution believe that the current way allows for flexibility and change to occur without too many problems. Those who want a written constitution believe that it should be codified so that the public as a whole has access to it - as opposed to just constitutional experts who know where to look and how to interpret it. The ongoing evolutionary nature of constitutions explains why England may be described as having a constitution even though it does not have a single written document that is designated as such. England's constitution instead inheres in a body of legal custom and tradition that regulates the relationship among the monarchy, the legislature (Parliament), the judicial system, and Common Law. Although England's constitution is, in a sense, unwritten because it does not originate in a single document, many written laws have been instrumental in its creation, and England in fact has one of the oldest traditions of constitutionalism. In a truly constitutional form of government, public officials are subject to constitutional rules and provisions and may not violate them without punishment. Such constitutional governments are also called limited governments because the constitution restricts the scope of their power over the people. However, many governments that have constitutions do not practice true constitutionalism. But in most nation states, as this writer has reiterated, the constitution becomes the source of balance in a society. This balance is dependent on the values, the interests, the priorities of the populace. In England, part of the values system is the respect for family and monarchy, thus, even if the constitution is considered unwritten, its traditions and tenets become eminent in recent laws and policies. It is of course, inevitable that there will be clash of rights amongst different groups, ethnicities, etc. And it is the rule of the constitution to delicately balance everything. It is also evident that most constitutions contain bill of rights, which intends to protect individual rights. According to Bernas(2002), Bill of rights is "a charter of liberties for the individual and a limitation upon the power of the state". The English Bill of Rights is an act passed by Parliament in 1689 which limited the power of the monarch. This document established Parliament as the most powerful branch of the English government. Overall, the constitution becomes the source of fundamental rights and duties, or the very ligaments that bind every civilized society. It intends to protect people against arbitrary and discriminatory use of political power. Examining the matters deeper, too much government power will result to tyranny or too much absence of it becomes an anarchy. Tyrant as defined in Black's Law Dictionary (2002) is a single ruler holding absolute power over a state or within an organization. The term carries modern connotations of a harsh and cruel ruler who places his or her own interests or the interests of a small oligarchy over the best interests of the general population which the tyrant governs or controls. However, in the classical sense, the word simply means one who has taken power by their own means as opposed to hereditary or constitutional power (and generally without the modern connotations). This mode of rule is referred to as tyranny. Many individual rulers or government officials are accused of tyranny, with the label almost always a matter of controversy. Whereas anarchic rule is defined by Black's Law Dictionary(2002) as "absence of government; a state of lawlessness due to the absence or inefficiency of the supreme power; political disorder. A theoretical social state in which there is no governing person or body of persons, but each individual has absolute liberty (without the implication of disorder). Absence or non-recognition of authority and order in any given sphere. Or without government or law. Indeed, in many ways, the constitution is in existent in order to provide legitimacy to the practice of political power. It sets the parameters and provides boundaries with regard to the extent of the coverage of the political power vested to the government. It also acts as restraint to the political power, by means of the Bill of Rights. This Bill, makes it a point that the fundamental rights of the citizens are protected and not subject to random and arbitrary practice of government power. Of course, no modern society is willing to be under a tyranny, a military rule, an anarchic status or a mob democracy. The constitution then, tries to balance the restraint of too much freedom amongst the citizenry whereas it also tries to authorize moderate and just practice of political power of its government in order to pursue the common good of the society. Barker, Ernest, trans. and ed. 1946. The Politics of Aristotle. New York: Oxford Univ. Press. Hamilton, Alexander, James Madison, and James Jay. Terence Ball, ed. 2003. The Federalist. Cambridge, U.K., New York: Cambridge Univ. Press. Joaquin Bernas, 2002, The Constitution, Rex Publishing and Lithography Read More