American vs. Pakistani Constitution
What is a constitution and what is its purpose? There are very few people in this world that can answer this question correctly. A constitution is a written document, which provides a framework for the structure of a government and other political institutions. The purpose of a constitution is to set out laws, regulations, and principles to secure the rights of people in a country or state. A constitution must concentrate on the fundamental rights of the people, and the division of powers. The power in a constitution is divided among three main branches: the executive, the legislative, and the judicial branch. These branches form a government. We all know very well that the United Sates' Constitution was the first one ever written nearly two hundred years ago. This constitution is still in effect today with a very few changes or amendments. Later other countries started adopting this idea and wrote their own constitutions. Some of these constitutions were very similar to the American one, while others had a few differences. In this essay we will be comparing the similarities and the differences between the American and the Pakistani constitution-focusing mainly on the fact that Pakistan has tried really hard to achieve a similar c
onstitution as of the United States, but it has been unsuccessful in constituting some parts. Finally, apart from the similarities and the differences, I would like to propose a few changes to the Pakistani constitution, which would surely lessen the possibilities of corruption. The first proposed change is that all the branches in the Pakistani constitution should have equal power so they can put checks and balances into affect. Meaning that the executive, the legislative, and the judicial branch should have equal powers so that each branch can keep an eye on the other two. This change will play a very important role in reducing the chances of corruption in Pakistan because the president will not be allowed to make any decision without the advice of the legislative branch, and even if he does make wrong decisions, the judicial branch will be there to prevent such occurings. The evidence that proves that the branches in Pakistan do not have equal power is under the division of powers section, where it says that in Pakistan there is a president as the head of state, prime minister as the head of government and the legislative and the judicial branch with not much power. In the American constitution, under the same division of powers section, we can clearly see that all the branches in US have "coequal" powers. So we understand from this change that if the idea of checks and balances is adopted by Pakistan, it will surely be on its way to success. Another modification is that the president in Pakistan must consult the upper house or the senate before appointing someone to a high governmental office. For example, before appointing someone for a chief justice, the president must not only consult the prime minister but also the senate to find out if his decision is right or not. By asking more than one person for advice, the chances of making mistakes will be reduced. In the American constitution under the executive branch section, we find that the president in US with the advice of the senate can "appoint ambassadors, public ministers, federal judges, and other high officials of the national government". In the Pakistani constitution, under the same section we learn that "the duties and powers of the president" consist of "appointing ministers, the provincial governors, the chiefs of the branches of the armed forces", etc. it does not say anywhere that the president needs to consult the senate before making such decisions. Again the Pakistani constitution has proved to be incomplete compared to the American counterpart. Finally, the last change that I would like to propose is: there should not be a prime minister in Pakistan and legislature must be responsible for the job that's to bo performed by the prime minister. This means that there is really no need for having a prime minister as the head of government; the president is capable of doing both the jobs with the help of the legislative branch. Once the prime minister is out, the president will be forced to take advice from the legislature before making any decision, which would help end the corruption. The evidence for the fact that the president in Pakistan works according to the advice of the prime minister is under the section called Prime Minister and Cabinet in the Pakistani constitution. It states, "in making decisions the president is required to act in accordance with the advice of the prime minister". In the American constitution under the President section it says the president is able to make decision "'with the advice and consent,' of the upper house". Once again we can see what other changes Pakistan has to
Some common words found in the essay are:
Court Pakistan, Supreme Court, American Moving, American Pakistani, United States', , Cabinet Pakistani, Pakistan It's, Representatives Similarly, Sates' Constitution, prime minister, pakistani constitution, judicial branch, legislative branch, division powers, chief justice, upper house, head government, president pakistan, constitution division powers, branch power, minister head government, prime minister head, judicial branch power, chief justice judges,
Approximate Word count = 2427
Approximate Pages = 10 (250 words per page double spaced)
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