Related Questions
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How true is the claim that good leadership is
absolutely necessary for high quality governance?
(Your Introduction)
WHAT MAKES POLITICAL AUTHORITY
LEGITIMATE
Specifically stated, according to
Locke, it is the express consent of a people within a state that gives
legitimacy and validity to political authority. This can be seen in his idea of
the social contract whereby the people who felt a potential threat to their
naturally acquired property within the state, had to give their political and
legal freedom partially over to a power that could help to enforce laws to
oversee the protection of state property by citizens. Every member of society
possesses an express consent which he has an obligation to willingly give over
to a leader, for the collective good of all. It is this express consent that
makes a man a full and responsible member of society, and when the people
collectively hand it over, it automatically makes political authority
legitimate.
IMPORTANCE OF TRUST AND FIDUCIARY
ELEMENT IN POLITICAL OFFICE
Fiduciary, simply implies having a
trustee relationship in any endeavor. Regarding political office, Locke
stresses the importance of involving the trust element as well as the structure
of fiduciary. As a result of this fiduciary structure, the ruler automatically
and obligatorily has the responsibility to respect the trust that the ruled has
bestowed on him. In other words, every ruler, within the provision of a
fiduciary structure, must be accountable and responsible in carrying out his or
her political duties.
THE PLACEMENT OF A RULER IN THE
SCHEME OF THINGS
Understanding the reason behind the
need for a ruler to oversee the state according to Locke will help to monitor
the level of responsibility of a ruler. In other words, we must know why we
really need a government in the state. Locke emphatically traces this need for
a ruler to the provision of nature for the general good of man. The earth
belongs to God and is a gift to man by God. Man is thus expected to exploit and
enjoy the resources therein. He does this by bringing in his labour, for labour
is the tool of the labourer (man). So, once man mixes his labour with any material
object, the final output is what he automatically has a legitimate claim to.
Thus, the existence and claim to private property is anchored on this natural
process. Accordingly, Locke reasons that it is God and not a sovereign who had
given men a title to the fruits of their labour. Since this is the case, it
becomes the role of the rulers of the states to create a suitable environment
where these properties would be secured.
THE CONSEQUENCE OF RULERS BETRAYING
FIDUCIARY AND TRUST
Having established the role of a ruler
in the scheme of things, it becomes inevitable that whenever there is a breach
of contract (social contract), the ruler may be overthrown. This holds because,
once a ruler this political trust, he has subjected himself to a position of
war against his subjects; and the resistance he should expect is not to be any
less than that given to an unjust aggressor. For the fact that each citizen has
willingly given over his or her express consent for a successful rule,
expecting a particular service in return, it is only right that any ruler who
breaks this agreement should be done away with as fast as possible (delete am
fast !!!). Hence, a revolution becomes very necessary in order to remove the
potential threat which the citizens have concerning their life and property
especially.
BALANCING AND JUSTIFYING REVOLUTION
Considering the fact that the
political environment as described by Locke is a society contained by man who
is a rational being and not an aggressive being, Locke emphasizes a balance in
the ideology of revolution. A ruler has every right to rule and to use his
political power for public good. However, all men also have the right to resist
the ruler of a legitimate political society only where such a ruler manifests abuses
of power and the fiduciary agreement. So, what can justify revolution and
resistance by the citizens is when there is a real and clear threat to the
estates, liberties and lives of the majority. Aside this, to rebel against the
government is unjust and unethical.
TYRANNY AS THE REAL ENEMY
In respect to the fore-going, it is
necessary to specifically state that tyrannous governments are the real
political enemies. Hence, there is adequate justifiable ground to resist
tyranny. Also, doing this does not imply a disturbance of the government or an
aggressive act, but it represents the just and ethical thing to do. This
follows because according to the rules of fiduciary structure, a tyrant lacks
authority and legitimacy; he is to be seen as a rebel, a traitor, a
backstabber. Tyrants are like beasts and it is the political right and
responsibility of every man within the state to destroy such political
nightmare. Tyrants must be overthrown. However, Locke stresses a particular
mindset of rebellion which the subjects must have. Political rebellion or
revolution should not be an act of revenge but a move to restore and recreate a
violated political order.
(Your Conclusion)
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