DOES ZAMBIA NEED A WRITTEN CONSTITUTION? Some of the best democracies in the world like the UK,New Zealand,Israel and Canada do not have a codified or written document called the Constitution. They use strict and resolute Codes of Conduct and Codes of practices such as collective responsibility and ministerial responsibility. Under the doctrine of collective responsibility, a minister may disagree during deliberations. But once a common stand has been agreed, they are all bound; thus a minister who later distances themselves from a decision may be forced to resign. By the same gesture, a minister may resign for the shortfalls of his department, even if he may directly not be the one to blame. Significant here, is the fact that it is not provided anywhere that they have to resign. These are some of the traditions and practice which have been entrenched for centuries: Acts of Parliament-In the absence of a written document called ‘The Constitution of the United Kingdom’, the UK has a rich and diverse legal framework that works seamlessly and has done so for centuries. Adaptations are made when necessary, and this in turn has enabled the Country to flourish and develop where others are still arguing about 50+1 or not. Further sources of the UK Constitution are ‘Common Law’ or what is called judicial precedents; also known as ‘Judge made Law’. These along with treaties, acts of the European Union and indeed, the European Convention on Human Rights, all form an integral part of the constitution. Parliamentary Supremacy- the Sovereign, along with the houses of Parliament, is endowed with Parliamentary supremacy. Consequently, they can make and unmake laws as they wish, depending on the dictates of the moment. Of interest is that because of the tenet of Parliamentary Supremacy, no parliament can bind its successor, neither can parliament be bound by its predecessor. This gives it the flexibility of being able to alter the constitution without the need for a special mechanism such as a referendum or constitutional assembly. The structure of the Monarchy (Chiefs) also plays its role in ensuring the Democratic rights of its Citizens. You do not need to spend millions of dollars to come up with a set of rules that will stand the test of time and be flexible enough to change when a new situation dictates so.
Posted on: Wed, 12 Mar 2014 10:02:53 +0000
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