Our System Of Government What Is Government? Ministry of Education B.E.S.T. Bahamas Education School Technology Project P.O. Box N3919 Nassau, Bahamas

1.Discuss the role of the teacher/principal in the running of a school. 2.Compare the role of the school administrators to that of the Government. 3.Explain why a government is needed. 4.List some responsibilities of the government. 5.Compare and contrast our form of government to Cuba and the United States of America.

Ministry – groups within the government with different responsibilities Laws – rules that people must obey Evidence – facts given in a court of law Jury – a group of people who listen to the facts in a court of law and makes a decision Democracy – when the government is elected by the people Political parties – Groups that run in an election in order to form a government Dictatorship - The country is ruled by one person, or a very small group

Clique – group that sets themselves apart from others Inherits – Pass down from older relatives mainly parents Monarchy – ruler-ship by a king or queen that inherited their position Republic - the leader (or head of state) is the President who may or may not be elected by the people Constitutional monarchy –two types of government in one - a democracy, but with a monarch – the Queen.

An organization is a group of people who join together to get something done. Each of us belongs to organizations which are important in our community – for example: school, church or club. An organization might involve people in the local community, or in the whole country. Government is an organization to which all Bahamians contribute.

Every organization has rules by which its members must abide. These rules are agreed to by the members. Some members are elected as officers to run the organization. These are some of the officers usually found in an organization:

*President *Secretary *Vice-President *Treasurer

Like all other organizations, government grows from the needs of the communities which make up our country: the need to get things done, and The need to have rules and laws to live by. Local government is organized at a local level, while national government is responsible for the running of a nation.

Some jobs are more easily done by a small group of people. It is the function of governments to do things for the community as a whole. Each area of government is the responsibility of a special department called a Ministry. For example, government may be involved in the transportation of goods and people from place to place in a country.

The government provides the leadership and the money to look at the country’s transportation needs, and decides when and where to build roads and docks. The government hires people to build and repair them. Governments are also responsible for buildings like hospitals and schools.

Most governments make sure that people have rights and freedoms. People living together in groups or communities need rules so that they know what they can do (by right) and cannot do (by law). It is the government that decides on the rules which the people must obey. These rules are called laws.

If everyone follows these rules, no one needs to be afraid for their property or life – there will be order in the community. Hence the expression: Law and Order. When someone disobeys a rule, he or she takes away the rights of another person, and there is disorder.

However, people cannot spend all their time making rules and making sure they are kept. The community elects leaders to do this, and they form the government of the country. Another responsibility of the government is to make sure that everyone receives justice and is treated equally. Different forms of government have different ways of administering justice, and some are more harsh than others.

When a law is broken in our country, the facts – called the evidence – are examined before a judge in a court of law. The evidence is considered by a group of ordinary people who form the jury. If the evidence proves that the offender is guilty, he or she must be punished.

There is no ideal form of government. Certainly, some forms of government are better than others, but all governments change with the times because conditions are constantly changing. What might be good for one country or community may not work for another. Just as different games have different rules, so different types of government have different laws. The form of government in a country depends upon the people who live there and their history.

There are several forms of government around the world. These include: democracy dictatorship monarchy republic

In a democracy there are free elections. There is freedom of speech, which means that people may criticize a government without fear of punishment. Power is shared amongst a number of bodies, each of which is created for a special purpose. For example, there is a cabinet of leaders which is responsible for the ministries, and judges who are responsible for administering the law. There are usually several political parties in a democratic country.

A dictatorship is the opposite of a democracy. The country is ruled by one person, or a very small clique. The leader is called a dictator, and holds power over the people by force. There is no freedom of speech or movement, and no free elections. The power of a dictator is often backed by the army.

A monarchy has a sovereign or monarch as leader. This person may be a king or a queen, an emperor or an empress. Such a leader usually inherits the power to govern.

This means that the power has been handed down through the royal or imperial family. Examples of monarchies in the world today are the United Kingdom, Denmark, Saudi Arabia and Thailand.

In a republic the leader (or head of state) is the President who may or may not be elected by the people. The position of President is not inherited. South Africa, France and the United States of America have republican governments.

Many countries, including The Bahamas, have a form of government that is a combination of two of the forms of government described above. In The Bahamas we have a constitutional monarchy. This means that we are in a democracy, but we also have a monarch – the Queen.

However, she has no real power, and her ceremonial duties are usually carried out by her representative, the Governor- General. The Bahamas shares Queen Elizabeth as head of State with several other Commonwealth countries – that were once in the British Empire.