Separation of powers in Singapore

Separation of powers in Singapore is founded on the concept of constitutionalism, which is itself primarily based upon distrust of power and thus the desirability of limited government. To achieve this, the Constitution of the Republic of Singapore splits the power to govern the country between three branches of government – the legislature, which makes laws; the executive, which executes them; and the judiciary, which enforces them. Each branch, while wielding legitimate power and being protected from external influences, is subjected to a system of checks and balances by the other branches to prevent abuse of power. This Westminster constitutional model was inherited from the British during Singapore's colonial years.

The Singapore system of government, as with those of a number of other Commonwealth jurisdictions, exhibits a partial separation of powers. The Cabinet is a parliamentary executive as the Prime Minister and other ministers are drawn from the Members of Parliament (MPs). Hence, it is the Cabinet that drives Parliament's legislative agenda. In addition, the executive possesses some law-making power as it is authorised to issue subsidiary legislation, while the President is a member of both the executive and the legislature.

The legislature exercises a check upon the executive by imposing a weak sanction through the doctrine of individual ministerial responsibility. Cabinet ministers may be called upon to justify their policies in Parliament by elected MPs (backbenchers belonging to the ruling party and opposition MPs), as well as non-elected Members (Non-constituency members of parliament (NCMPs) and Nominated members of parliament (NMPs)).

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