A LECTURE ON POLITICS

POLITICAL SCIENCEMSU-ILIGAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

PREPARED BY: PRINCESS MAE S. CHUA

MSU-ILIGAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGYCollege of Arts and Social Sciences

Department of Political Science

PoliticsIt comes from a Greek word

“POLIS” refers to the ancient city-state of which Athens and Sparta

were the more prominent.

It is the power relationships between individuals and groups.

Politics have also determined who shall occupy the roles of

leadership in government and how powers of government shall

exercised.

It also deals with public affairs, that is, the distribution of goods

and services to satisfy the demands of the public.

It is also concerned with conflict and resolution.

It includes the decision-making and decision-enforcing processes

in any group that makes and enforces rules for its members

(Ranney, 2001).

THE BASIC CONCEPT OF POLITICS

The capacity of an actor to compel or

influence other actors to alter

their behavior or to do what they

would not do other wise.

Resources such as MONEY,

INTELIGENCE, FAME,

CONNECTIONS, etc. can be a

source of POWER

Threat of coercion,

consequences or reward is present in POWER.

Refers to the formal or legal relationships

between policymakers and citizens.

Therefore, AUTHORITY is power exercised within the confines of

established procedures, traditions, and practices,

ideology, and laws

Is a specie of power but it may connote more than those instances where

powerand authority

manifest themselves.

Influence takes place without the threat of coercion or sanctions,

or without the promise of reward.

A predisposition which may be positively or negatively

directed towards certain people, issues, activity, or institutions

It is an idea charged with

emotions, which predisposes

certain kinds of actions to a particular situation.

Three components of attitude:

1. COGNITIVE2. AFFECTIVE3. BEHAVIORAL

INTENT

Refers to the summation of the expressed or verbalized attitudes of

individuals.It can be expressed in a poll or verbalized in any forum, it is

converted into an individual opinion.

Is the way how political actors view his environment and the

various stimuli within.

Are enduring beliefs that a

specific end-state of existing order

or mode of conduct is

preferable to an opposite state.

Values plays a big role in decision-

making. The kind of value every policymakers

carry may manifest in

policymaking.

This is a disharmony arising from stresses and strains due to some changes in the

political environment.

Conflict can also be viewed as an inherent feature of the political system arising from

the continuing competition for scarce available resources.

Is the process by which authorized individuals or groups make decisions to allocate in the society through resolutions, laws, policies,

programs, decrees, etc.

Is the process by which authorized individuals or groups make decisions to allocate in the society

through resolutions, laws, policies, programs, decrees, etc.

According to John C. Calhoun, “interest were destined to be varied and diverse in the

society”. Because of this diversity, individuals tend to associate themselves in order

to pursue their common interests.

Groups that emerge from the association of individuals with common interest serve as the

vehicle through which they participate in politics.

Pls. study Governance

and Type of

governance in advance

What is GOVERNANCE?It is the exercise of

political, economic, administrative authority in the management of political affairs.

This is the capacity of the government to

effectively manage its

resources and implement sound

policies.

Governance means the way those with

power use that power.

(ADB as cited by McCawley, 2005)

TYPES OF GOVERNANCE

POLITICAL GOVERNANCE

It is the formulation and implementation of

policies by the government.

The interplay of the three branches of government in which

the legislative branch formulates policies, the

executive branch implements policies and the judicial branch

adjudicates conflicts.

ECONOMIC GOVERNANCE

This is the

process of

decision-making

that affects

domestic

economic

activities and the

relationship

between the

domestic and

international

market.

ADMINISTRATIVE GOVERNANCE

The process of implementing public policies through an

efficient, independent and accountable

bureaucracy

ECOLOGICAL GOVERNANCE

The use of science and technology and

the mobilization of all stakeholders in the management of the

environment.

REQUIREMENTS OF

GOOD GOVERNANCE

TRANSPARENCY

The general public should be informed about

government operations.

This requires that information is accessible, timely, relevant, accurate

and complete.

ACCOUNTABILITY

The extent that government officials can be held responsible for their

discussions and for the performance of their agencies.

PARTICIPATORY

The general public including stakeholders and marginalized groups are able to participate

in and influence both the decision-making process and

ongoing government operations.

LEGITIMACYThe operation of the

government is acceptable to the public. Public decisions should

be directed towards common welfare and the manner of implementing government policies and

programs should be within the bounds of

accepted practices and procedures.

EFFICIENCY & EFFECTIVENESS IN THE USE OF RESOURCES

Effectiveness is the extent in which the acts of government contribute to the performance

government functions such as in the maintenance of peace and

order, delivery of basic goods and services, and maintenance of

ecological balance.

Efficiency is the extent that the functions of government are

performed through established processes and within reasonable

cost.

THE CONCEPT OF STATE & GOVERNMENT

What is STATE?

State is a compulsory association with territorial basis having the monopoly of the legitimate use of force

(Weber, 1958).

According to James Garner, “State is a community of

persons more or less numerous occupying a definite portion of

territory completely free of external control and pursuing an organized government to which

a great body of inhabitants render habitual obedience.

A state possesses a power called SOVEREIGNTY.

Due to globalization of the affairs of the state in the modern world, there is also a need for the newly emerging state to be recognized

by other state.

Technically, RECOGNITION is not a fundamental element of a State, yet it is important for its survival and prosperity.

Non-recognition could effectively isolate a State in Int’l for a like the

UN

Nation is an ethnic concept, defined as people, or an aggregation of men existing in the form of an organized society usually inhabiting a distinct

portion of the earth, speaking the same language, using the same customs, possessing historic

continuity, and disguised from other like groups by their racial origin and characteristics, and generally,

but not necessarily, living under the same government and sovereignty.

What is NATION?

The nations referred to in the UN are actually states.

The United Nations is an international organization founded in 1945 after the Second World War by 51 countries committed to maintaining international peace and security, developing friendly relations among nations and promoting social progress,

better living standards and human rights.

The UN has 4 main purposes To keep peace throughout the world; To develop friendly relations among nations; To help nations work together to improve the

lives of poor people, to conquer hunger, disease and illiteracy, and to encourage respect for each other’s rights and freedoms;

To be a centre for harmonizing the actions of nations to achieve these goals.

Distinguishing NATION and STATE

STATE NATIONState is a word that has been

derived from the latin ‘status’, which means ‘status’

or ‘condition’.

The word ‘nation’ has been derived from the latin ‘natio’,

which means a ‘set of people’.

Juristic or political concept Racial or ethnic concept

Where there is a state there is at least one nation

There can be a nation without there being a state.

A state may be made up of one or more nations, as in the case of united states.

A nation may occupy two or more states, like the

american nation, german nation or the jewish.

Four Elements of the State

Refers to the inhabitants of a State. There is no strict

requirement on their number, but it is generally accepted that they must be composed of both sexes of

sufficient number to be self-perpetuating.

People

The population of States range from more than a billion like China or a few hundred thousand in the case of mini-states like Qatar and Fiji.

The capability of the state is determined

largely y the quality of the population. No

education or training is required for the inhabitants of a

territory before it can aspire for statehood.

Territory

The fixed portion of the surface of the earth inhabited by the people of the State.

A territory may extend over a vast

expanse like CANADA or covers only a

small component of territory like Sngapore.

Components of territory includes TERRITORIAL DOMAIN, FLUVIAL

DOMAIN, AERIAL DOMAIN

TOPOGRAPHY Topography of a

territory, the kind of its soil, the climate and the available natural resources

within are important

determinants of the quality of the lives of the inhabitants.

Saudi Arabia has generally BARREN SOIL but

underneath is a vast oil deposit, which provides

WEALTH.

Israel’s soil is likewise INFERTILE but because of technology & the work discipline of the people,

it is currently a NET EXPORTER OF FOOD

to other countries.

Sovereignty

This is the supreme power inherent in a state.

Two kinds of Sovereignty:1. Legal Sovereignty2. Political Sovereignty

Government

This is the instrument that provides mechanisms in

determining, formulating, and implementing the policies of the

state.

It is an institution by which the society’s needs for social

services are satisfied and by which conflicting interests are

reconciled (Ayaton, et.al, 2000)

The three branches of the Government

Distinguishing Government & Administration

ADMINISTRATION

This refers to the group of persons headed by the

President in whose hands the reins of government

at given period.

GOVERNMENTThe instrument that

provides mechanisms in determining, formulating,

and implementing policies.

Functions of Government

Constituent FunctionsThese are the basic functions of the

government that must be performed. Their performance is the minimum requirement for

an orderly existence.

Administrative FunctionsThese are the undertaken to advance the

general interest of society, such as public works and public charity. These may be undertaken optional by the government because they can

be undertaken by private sectors.

Forms of Government

According to the number of people who rule or

participate in the exercise of sovereignty

Monarchy

Oligarchy

Democracy

Monarchy

A government in which the supreme power and final authority is in the

hands of a single person.

The monarch comes from a ROYAL FAMILY.

His/her title may be KING, QUEEN, EMIR, EMPEROR, EMPRESS, TZAR, TSARINA

Monarchy is classified into two:

ABSOLUTE MONARCHY LIMITED MONARCHY