Government, democracy and you
Civic Education · BECE · JSS (BECE)
What you need to know
- Democracy: government of the people, by the people, for the people — through votes, parties, and a constitution.
- Three arms: legislature makes law, executive carries it out, judiciary interprets. They check each other.
- Three tiers: federal, state, local government. Local government is a tier, not a department of the state.
- Rule of law: nobody is above the law, equality before it, rights protected by courts.
- Voter apathy: people stay home because of fear, distrust or “my vote does not count”. Civic education is the long cure.
- Cultism, examination malpractice, drug abuse and human trafficking: know causes, effects, and what a student can actually do (report, refuse, tell a trusted adult).
The mistake to avoid
The President is head of the executive, not of the judiciary. A court can rule against the government. That is the point.