Week 11: Political Apparatus and Bureaucracy

 

 Political Apparatus and Bureaucracy

What is apparatus?

Apparatus is a system or systematic organization of activities, function, processes, etc, directed toward specific goal (www.dictionary.com)

What is Bureaucracy?

Bureaucracy  is the body of officials and administrators, especially of a government department.

Who is the political apparatus?

General term referring to the entire governmental system and the people who run it (including you!). Or, the institutions and practices that maintain and sustain government.

A typical of democratic Apparatus 

Indonesia Government Institution

Essential elements :

1. Executive : to make  a decisions

2. Legislative : to make a regulations

3. Judiciary : to uphold justice

4. Military : to protect the state

5. Law enforcement : to enforce the law

Who are the executives?

1. Executive are the ones who execute the law, e.g. Prime Minister or President, along with their appointed officials.

2. Head of the state and head of government could be two different things!

General functions of the executive

1.      Ceremonial / symbolic

2.      Policy – making 

3.      Popular leading

4.      Bureaucratic leadership

5.      Crisis leadership

Who are the legislatives?

1. Legislatives are the ones who represent the people in government and formulates policies.

2. Despite the name, law - making is never done alone by legislative.

Indonesia is using unicameral legislative, that is DPR as a representative.The country that using bicameral system is United Kingdom. There are HOL (House Of  Law) and HOC (House Of Command).

General functions of legislative :

1. Representation

2. Check and executive power

3. Training grounds

4. Formulate and approve laws 

5. Formulate and approve state budget

6. Legitimacy

Depending on relations with other branches (and as per cultural practices), legislative may have less or more power.  The example is US President can’t do anything without approval from legislative. But, Indonesia executive more powerful than legislative.

Who are the judiciary?

1. Judiciaries are the ones who interpret and administer justice. (should we change, revise or stay for the law)

2. They are relatively independent and have the power to check both executive and legislative.  

3. In each country, the legal system is different.

 

General functions of the judiciary

1. Interpreting legislation :revising, amending, abolishing

2. Arbiter of justice (decide 10 years or more for murder by judges)

3. Upholding the constitution

4. Checking and balancing legislative and executive

5. Providing legal counsel for citizens

 

The Military

1. The armed forces of the state. Responsible for matters of national security

2. In some cases, the military can be separate from politics or heavily involved

3. Separate sub – field of political science known as “Civil – Military Relation”

 

General functions of the military

1. Protecting the sovereignty of the state. 

2. Executing national security directives as defined by the executive authority.

 

What happens when the military runs the states?

1. The military may plot coup d’etat, in which they overthrow the executive authority and establish their own like Indonesia in 1967

2. There are many reasons why a coup may happen.

Law enforcement (LEA)

1.The enforces of the law. Responsible for maintaining law and order within the state

2. Not only limited to police. Can refer to any institution that is empowered to enforce the law using force.

The relevant authority :

1. National Police

2. Military police : military follow  the rules

3. Customs and excise : bea cukai, immigration

4. Private LEAs = Guard in ATM or guard in a Mall

 

General functions of LEA

1. Upholding and enforcing the law. 

2. Providing public safety.

3. Lawful seizure and or arrest.

4. Carry out covert/overt investigations.

 

What is the ideal political apparatus?

 The answer is very country specific. And since there is no right answer, let us understand what an ideal apparatus ought to deliver.

Ideal apparatus

1. Should be able to carry their duties and preserve the state and constitution. 

2. Should be able to fulfil the common interests.

3. Should not have unchecked power.

 

Question to consider in the formula

1. What does what? Function and extent.

2. What checks/ balances what? Supervision of power.

The debate on privacy : Should the state be allowed to conduct mass surveillance?

How if the law is officially confirm and people disagree with the law and law abusive in a country? Who's responsibility then? People should go to judiciary (Mahkamah Konstitusi  in Indonesia) to analysis the law then processing to changing of the law.

Then, what if a person steal someone's else important personal data? Who's responsibility to accept a report, catch and process it first? It should be Kominfo (Indonesia instantion) and police as LEA.

So, you might wondering, where's legislative and executive here? The legislative is the law maker  and policy decision for a country refer to an agreement with executive.

The executive as a actor of the law submission or policy submission.

Conclusion :

1. The political apparatus generally comprises of three major branches of government that make up the governmental system.

2. The ideal division of power between these institutions is the central issue of political science and philosophy.

Written by : Ditha Egidia Sari

Picture designed by : Ditha Egidia Sari

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