Separation of Power in John Locke: A Critique

Abstract

The quest for the best form of governmental system has led several countries of the world to engage themselves in the practice of one system of government or the other. This quest, with special concern to the political history of Britain, prompted the man John Locke to delve into formulation of the theories of governmental systems.These he did by tracing the social and economic situation of man in the state of nature, and finding out the need for man's social, economic, and political emancipation, he proposed a type of government which has the primary purpose of preserving the citizens' property. For the realization of this end, he employed some principles as tools for procuring this purpose. One of those tools is the concept of separation of power which simply suggests the division of political power among different domains, to avoid the fusion of power or absolute monarchism in the control of the Commonwealth. Given the assumed good intention of the idea, with the criticisms therein, this work aims at giving an in-depth analysis of the idea in order to determine the efficacy of that concept to procuring Locke's purpose of the commonwealth. Bearing in mind John Locke's reason for the formation of civil society, it therefore demands that for the actualization of Locke's purposes and precepts, an introduction of a new arm of government called an independent judiciary be made which has the very primary function of law interpretation as well as gaining or regaining one's lost liberty or property, as only this will make Locke's concept of separation of power yielding to his purpose of governmentThe need for the arm of government called Judiciary, which must be saddled with the responsibility of interpreting the Law of the land and checkmating the Executive and the legislative arms with the aim of ensuring the enthronement and sustenance of morality, can never be over emphasised.. This aim can be achieved by the use of the philosophical tool of analytic method to expose some loopholes in his idea especially the one of paying little or no attention to the judiciary, as its reconsideration will better the system of government he proposes.