Presidential vs Parliamentary System! The best one out of it for Pakistan and a comparative analysis of governments from around the globe!
There is an echo of the presidential system in Pakistan today everyone is giving political arguments for and against it beyond this politics, we will tell you what a presidential system is, what are its advantages and disadvantages, in which countries of the world is it prevalent, and how is the head of government is elected?
Presidential System vs. Parliamentary System, Who is the Head of Government?
The presidential system is such a system in which all administrative powers are vested in the President. He is not only the head of government but also often the head of state. On the other hand, in a parliamentary system, the head of government is the Prime Minister. while the head of state is the president, queen, or king. In a parliamentary system, the prime minister is the source of power, and the status of head of state is formal that is, he is bound to follow the advice of the Prime Minister
Method of Election
The second major difference between the presidential and parliamentary systems is that in a presidential system, the president is directly elected by parliament
nor is it directly accountable however, Parliament can remove it by impeachment. in the United States, the Electoral College elects the president but with the exception of the United States, where a full presidential system is in place there, the president is directly elected through elections in a presidential system. the people know that they are handing over the reins of the country to someone.
Not only this, in some countries the head of government and the head of state is the same, they are elected by the parliament on a parliamentary system, on the other hand, the head of government or the PM is part of the parliament, he must be a Member of Parliament.
One of the drawbacks of this system is that people sometimes do not know who will be their next head of government. in this system, either the president or the parliament has the power to remove the head of government and in some countries, both can do just that. Unlike the presidential system, in a parliamentary system, the head of government is also accountable to the parliament.
Cabinet Formation
The third difference between the two major systems is the formation of the cabinet. The presidential system is made up of more technocrats. however, MPs can also be part of the cabinet. In a parliamentary system, the administration, i.e. government ministers belongs to the parliament. it can also have technocrats but MP's are preferred. these ministers usually belong to the ruling party. the head of government can also appoint an assistant and advisor but they are not part of the cabinet in most countries.
Breaking Assemblies
The fourth major difference between the presidential and parliamentary systems is that in a presidential system, the president can break up assemblies but in a parliamentary system, the prime minister can do that.
Term of Office
The fifth difference is that the presidential system has a fixed term for the presidency and it cannot be removed except by impeachment. however, in a parliamentary system, the term of office of the Prime Minister is fixed but PM can still be dismissed at any time whether the no-confidence comes or the president sends it home
Division of Authority
The advantage of the presidential system is that the distribution of power in this system of government is very clear that is, the president has administrative powers.
Parliament makes the constitution and legislation and the judiciary interprets the constitution as well as ensures the rule of law on the other hand, Not so in the parliamentary system. in this, the head of government is elected by the parliament. the administration is part of parliament and in the appointment of judges of the judiciary not only the judiciary has the power but, also the administration and the parliament become part of the process of their appointment that is, in this system, the boundaries of institutions are never clear and it has to be said all the time that it would be better for the institutions to work within their limits.
System of Government Election Turnout
Another important difference is that in countries where the presidential system is in place turnout in elections is usually higher than in countries with a parliamentary system. one of the reasons for this is that the people know 100% of who they want to be their leader but in the parliamentary system, it is not so clear.
Criticism of the Presidential and Parliamentary System
According to critics and experts, the distribution of power, speed in decision-making, political stability, and direct elections are important features of the presidential system. political stability also strengthens economic policies, which makes development lasting. among the shortcomings, the tendency of dictatorship is the most important in the decisions of the President. in this system the political tussle between the administration and the legislature continues
this weakens the accountability process. one flaw is that the president cannot be removed despite being unpopular. according to the World Bank's 2001 report, the proportion of corruption in the parliamentary system is low then, whenever necessary, midterm elections may be held that is, the head of government is easy to be dismissed.
Its shortcomings include the incomplete separation of powers of the administration, the legislature, and the judiciary. legislation based on personal likes and dislikes, and the monopoly of political parties. The presidential system in the United States is the greatest example of a complete presidential system. the United States
where the president is elected for four years and he can become president at most twice. the President can veto any law made by Parliament. the US President is also the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces. however, only Congress has the power to declare war on a country. the responsibilities of the army are also determined by Congress. the President has to seek approval for all appointments, including cabinet and nominated judges, and for trade agreements with other countries from Senate. congress can impeach any cabinet member and federal judge, including the president, the judiciary has the power to review any constitutional provision or law.
Where is the Presidential System in Place?
Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Turkey, and Nigeria, the president is directly elected by the people in 43 countries. the only difference is that in the United States, Electoral College votes are valued, and to become president, one has to get them. in Turkey's presidential system has been implemented through a constitutional referendum in 2017. not everyone in Turkey, like the United States, can be a presidential candidate. only a party that has won five percent of the vote in a parliamentary election can nominate a president or have at least twenty seats in Parliament. in the presidential election, when a candidate does not get 50% of the vote, there is a second round in which the two candidates who get the most votes contest and the one who gets the most votes becomes the president, the term of office of the President is five years.
In Brazil, too, the president is elected under a simple two-round system, as in Turkey but here the term of office is four years. Mexico is a unique country in that any president is elected only once in a lifetime for six years then he can't run for president again. there is no vice president in this system. Venezuela's president, on the other hand, has a six-year term but could run for re-election unlike in the United States, presidential and vice-presidential elections are held separately. In the Philippines, in Nigeria, a member of any party can run for office but no independent candidate is allowed to run.
Belarus is one of the countries where the president has the center of power. the president is elected by the people but the system is dictatorial. on the other hand, the House of Representatives not only elects the Prime Minister but can also remove him from the no-confidence motion. in this system PM is part of the Council of Ministers, there are also five Deputy Prime Ministers.
Now let's talk about the Central Asian country of Kazakhstan where the Unitary State System is prevalent i.e. the whole country is one state.
Where is the Semi-Presidential System?
There are also many countries where the semi-presidential system is in place. powers are divided between the president and the prime minister. the Prime Minister and his Cabinet are accountable to Parliament. the president is sometimes elected directly and sometimes the parliament elects the president.
Here the president, like the president of the United States, has the right to veto parliamentary legislation. the head of government here is the Prime Minister accompanied by three Deputy Prime Ministers and 16 Ministers. France, where the head of state and the prime minister are the head of government - Prime Minister is elected by the President. The president can remove not only the prime minister but also the parliament. not only this, but the President also snatches away the powers of Parliament by holding a referendum on any issue. The president also has the power to appoint judges and civil servants. In Russia, where the presidential-parliamentary system is in place with some amendments. here the president is the head of state and is elected for six years. he then nominates the Prime Minister, his deputies, and the ministers which are approved by Parliament. they can be removed not only by the President himself but also by the Parliament. Russia is different in that it has 22 independent republics in one federation. they have their own constitution, flag, anthem, and their own national language. not only this but he is also entitled to be called the head of state of Tatarstan.
Why is China Different?
It is also important to mention China, where a one-party system is in place in other words, the President and the PM are not elected by the people but by the Congress of the same party, the Chinese Communist Party. however, in China, too, the president has the most power and he is not accountable to anyone except his party's Congress.
Iran's Unique Presidential System. Iran's presidential system is also unique in the world where the head of state is not directly elected by the people, he is called the Supreme Leader which is elected by a Council of Experts. the president is responsible for running government affairs in the country. President appoints his own vice president, that is, not by people's vote. all matters pertaining to the state are handled by the Supreme Leader. he is the head of not only the armed forces but also the judiciary and state television. his opinion is also considered final in economic matters. let's tell you that in more than 90 countries of the world, some form of the presidential system is prevalent.
Failed Experiment of Presidential System
Now let's talk about the countries that tried the presidential system but it did not succeed. so far, 24 countries have experienced a presidential system for at least a year in these countries, Cuba had a presidential system for 57 years, from 1902 to 1959. Taiwan, Haiti, Azerbaijan, Vietnam, Bangladesh, and South Korea also adopted the presidential system. however, these countries later adopted a parliamentary system. in Pakistan, the presidential system was tested from 1962 to 1970. former COAS General (retd) Muhammad Ayub Khan was the President for a long time. during this period one war with India took place and another took place the following year. after that Pakistan was divided into two parts. the semi-presidential system remained in force in Pakistan for 17 years in which the president had more power. during this period, Zia-ul-Haq has been the President for ten years and Pervez Musharraf for seven years, these two presidents could have run the government by breaking up the assemblies.
Where is the Parliamentary System in Place?
so let's take a look at features of parliamentary system. in a parliamentary system, the prime minister or chancellor has power over the president. while the office of head of state is a mere formality, whether he is a king or a queen. the parliamentary system is prevalent in most of the countries that have been colonized by the British Crown. more than 60 countries around the world have parliamentary systems. majority of Oceania countries have also adopted a parliamentary system. major countries with this system include the United Kingdom, Spain, Germany, Sweden, Denmark and Norway, Greece, Italy, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Australia, Japan, Malaysia, and Canada.