Chapter four

Constitutions and constitutionalism

What is Constitution?

In the contemporary world, there is no country that does not have a

constitution; being a body of fundamental laws by which a country is
governed. It is inconceivable that the modern government, with all its
complex apparatus can operate without a constitution. Even in the pre-
modern societies with its less elaborate institutions, a constitution would
still be needed, otherwise the simple task of law making, execution and
adjudication would still be less precise, or lack proper delineation, if not
problematic.
A constitution is usually a body of rules and regulations; it may be written
or unwritten, by which a group of people, a country or an association is to
be governed.
It explains the relationship between the organs of government as well as
the fundamental rights and obligations of the citizens.
Constitution is the supreme law from which other legislation or enactments
draw their strengths. It is also the only means by which the actions of a
government and its institutions could be measured or assessed to be
legal or ultra vires.
A constitution is therefore a fundamental prerequisite for the political
stability, economic wellbeing and social cohesion of a country.
A constitution provides the framework and principles, which governs the
organization of government, its institutions, the nation’s political
philosophy and aspirations as well as the relationships between the citizens
and the state.
Literally, a constitution is the system of laws and basic principles that a
state, a country or an organization is governed. A constitution in general
terms, is the body of rules which directly or indirectly affect the
distribution of power or the exercise of the sovereign power in any nation-
state. Classically, it is the collection of principles according to which the
powers of the government, the rights of the governed and the relations
between the two are adjusted.
The word constitution has been defined in different ways by scholars. A.
V. Dicey explained that a constitution is meant to be a document having a
special legal sanctity. According to Austin Ranney, “a constitution is a
whole body of fundamental rules, written or unwritten, legal and extra -
legal according to which a particular government operates”.
According to the Black’s Dictionary, a constitution is the organic and
fundamental law of a nation or state, which may be written or unwritten,
establishing the character and conception of its government, laying the
basic principles to which its internal life is to conform, organizing the
government, regulating, distributing as well as limiting the functions of its
different departments/organs. There are two ways we can view a
constitution. One can look at it as an “ethno-cultural arrangement” which
bring together the way of life of a people. In this sense, a constitution is
concerned with establishing a standard by which a people judge
themselves and their leaders. In another sense, a constitution can be seen as
simply a legal document, which defines the power, structure and the
institutional sources corresponding to such power structure.
For example, when the question is asked: What is the basis of the power
exercised by the legislature in confirming executive appointments or
approving treaties, or that of the judiciary in determining the legality or
otherwise of legislations or executive actions? One should look into the
constitution to find the rationale.
Constitution is therefore a charter of governance; it prescribes how the
power of the state is distributed among the institutions in the state, and the
process of its amendments. Constitutions define the limits of a government
authority, thereby automatically establishing and safeguarding human
rights. A constitutional democracy is therefore a form of government,
which is regulated by a constitution and whose procedure cannot be altered
except by a method accepted by its citizens.
Types of Constitution
Written constitution
When a Constitution is described as written, it means that the body of rules
and regulations by which a country is governed is written or codified in a
single document that can be consulted. This presupposes that the
Constitution becomes a document through a process that involves (or
accommodates the views of) the majority of the people who participate
either directly or through their representatives in drafting, debating,
reviewing and adopting the contents of the document before it can be
regarded as the fundamental laws of a nation. The American Constitution
readily satisfies this requirement since it originated from the Constitutional
Convention held at Philadelphia in 1878. To some extent, the 1979 Nigeria
Constitution can also be regarded as having partially met this requirement
since it originated from the Constitution Drafting Committee of ‘49 wise
men’ set up by Gen. Muritala Muhammed regime in 1975. The draft was
debated by a group of elected Nigerians from each Local Government
Areas in the federation called ‘Constituent Assembly’ that was put in place
by Gen. Olusegun Obasanjo in 1975. The document was promulgated into
law through a decree enacted by the Supreme Military Council (Ojiako,
1979). The major difference is that unlike the United States’ Constitution
that was ratified by nine of the thirteen pioneer states in the country, while
that of Nigeria was not subjected to a referendum or a plebiscite.
This is why the preamble “We the people of Nigeria”at the beginning of
Nigeria’s successive Constitutions since 1979 is viewed in some quarters,
as dubious.
We can now identify the salient features of a written Constitution as follows:
It usually contains a preamble at the beginning, which is a statement
expressing the essence, goals, aspirations and vision of the people of the
country. It is otherwise known the spirit of the Constitution.
 It also specify the organs of government, defines their respective powers
and their relationships with one another, including the eligibility
requirements before individuals can occupy positions in government.
1). A written Constitution usually states Fundamental Human Rights such as
freedom of speech, freedom of association, freedom of movements as
listed in Chapter IV, Sec. 33-45 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal
Republic of Nigeria. It also contains their limitations and safeguards,
including the obligations the citizens in a state owe to themselves and the
state (Awolowo, 1966). Most written Constitutions like those of the USA
and Nigeria do contain elaborate procedure for their amendments, which
often make most written Constitutions to be rigid from the point of view of
the stringent process of altering or changing them. Sec.9 (1-4) of the
Nigerian Constitution, 1999 states the cumbersome mode of altering the
provisions of the Constitution.
2). The power sharing arrangement is also enshrined in a written Constitution.
For instance, the Second Schedule, Parts I and II of the Nigerian
Constitution, 1999 contains the Legislative Powers shared among the
Federal, States and the Local Government Councils under the Exclusive,
Concurrent and Residual powers.
3). The document gives the Federal government the powers to legislate on all
items under the Exclusive List; while both the Federal and State
governments can legislate on every item under the Concurrent Legislative
List, only the Local Councils have Residual Powers over items not listed
under the two Legislative Lists.
It is also noteworthy the consistent addition in the Nigerian Constitution,
since 1979, the introduction of a chapter called the Fundamental
Objectives and Directive Principles of State Policy which explains the
fundamental obligations which are encoded as Political, Economic, Social,
Educational, Foreign and Environmental Objectives (See Secs. 13-20,
Nigerian Constitution, 1999). However, scholars see the provisions as a
façade of honesty because the Constitution did not make it justiciable (i.e.
violations by the state cannot be challenged in law court). There are no
provisions to guarantee the rights of any aggrieved citizen not satisfied
with the performance of a government concerning meeting its Social
Contract obligations as enshrined under the sections, can seek legal redress
or judicial intervention under the fundamental enforcement.
1. Unwritten constitution
When we refer to any state as having an unwritten Constitution, it means
the guiding principle by which the country is governed is traditionally not
set out in a single document. This implies that the fundamental laws
according to which the given state is governed are based on conventions,
customs, usages, etc. The Great Britain is a good example of a country
operating unwritten Constitution in her more than 500 years of democracy.
The British Constitution is drawn from diverse sources, extending from the
13th century to the present. This means that the British Constitution is
more or less a product of a historic evolution that led to the change from
absolute to Constitutional Monarchy in 1215.
There was never a period when the people of Great Britain deliberately
proposed to make a Constitution but this should not be misconstrued to
mean that they do not have a Constitution stating how the affairs of the
British people are run. What is important to note is that there is no single
book that could be referred to as the British Constitution rather; it is a
system of government which has not been written down in a documentary
form. In this regard, it must be stressed that some parts of the Constitution
are contained in different statute books. The fact that there was no any
period in the British history when they actually constituted a constitutional
conference for the purpose of making a Constitution makes it impossible to
find the British Constitution in a single document. Given its nature, the
British Constitution contains not only statutes or Acts of Parliament but
also customary laws of the land and conventions, which qualifies to be
referred to as Constitution (albeit unwritten). Sources of unwritten
Constitution therefore include statutes such as the Magna Carter (1215),
Petition of Right (1628), the Bill of Rights (1689), the Reform Act (1832)
and the Parliamentary Act (1911), Common Law and Case law,
conventions or customs and judicial decisions.
2. Flexible Constitution
These are the Constitutions whose fundamental laws can be changed or
amended by simple majority votes of the members of the Parliament. This
form of Constitution is used by small countries that operate a unitary
system of government. The amendment can be made in such constitutions
by the same procedures used in passing ordinary laws in the parliament.
Some of the countries operating flexible constitutions include Great
Britain, Ghana during the first Republic, Italy and New Zealand. Flexible
constitutions may or may not be written. It is also possible to have a
written constitution that is at the same time flexible as shown in the case of
New Zealand.
3. Rigid Constitution
Rigid Constitutions are those that cannot be easily changed or amended
because they require special and usually difficult process. This implies that
the process of amending such constitution is different from the ordinary
law- making process; the process is not only difficult but also complicated.
This process is actually laid down in the constitution themselves. Examples
of countries with rigid constitutions are Australia, United States of
America, Canada and Nigeria. Some reasons have been advanced for
adopting the special procedures. It is said that such rigid constitutions
should be changed only with proper deliberation; and that such process
should give the people, at least through their elected representatives, or via
a referendum opportunity to express their views whether a change is
necessary or not before such an amendment(s) is made.
The amendment process is therefore made difficult to protect the interests
of the people. For example the Nigerian Constitution can only be amended
with the concurrence of two-thirds majority of all members of the
National Assembly (i.e. the Senate and the Houses of Representatives),
and approved by resolution of the Houses of Assembly of not less than
two-thirds of all the States in the federation. Another important reason for
the adoption of a rigid constitution by a federal state is to prevent the union
from disintegration through secession.
4. Unitary Constitution
A government is regarded as unitary when the national or central
government is supreme over other levels of government that might exist in
a given state. Other levels of government referred to in the above definition
are the local governments or units. The central government has full legal
right to over-rule such Local governments. They are not only created by
the center, they owe their existence to the center and are subordinate to the
national Government. The principle that governs a unitary constitution is
Unitarianism. The word ‘Unitarianism’ means the concentration of
political power in the hands of one visible sovereign power; be it that of a
parliament or a legitimate dictator. In short, a unitary constitution means
that sovereignty is exercised from one source rather than from many
sources. It is a unit center of power, meaning that power emanates from
one source only.
5. Federal Constitution
A country with a federal constitution is called a federation; and its
government is referred to as a federal system of government. A federal
constitution or system can be defined as a constitutional arrangement in
which the powers of government are distributed between the central and
component units. In its strict sense, it means the distribution of powers
between the government at the federal level and those of the federating or
co-ordinate states who are relatively autonomous. This means in effect that
the powers being exercised by these component states are distributed along
what is known in America as reserved or shared powers, or in Nigeria as
Exclusive, Concurrent and Residual powers. From the above definition, we
can easily see that a federation is union of autonomous states who have
come together to become a larger political entity as in USA or a dis-
aggregative federation where a large country is broken into smaller units,
as it is the case in Nigeria (Ayoade, 1980:5-8).
In a federal state each of the component states, like the federal
government, derive their powers from the same source- the constitution.
This is why Kenneth Wheare (1963), a foremost authority of federalism
defined it as a constitutional arrangement in which “neither the central nor
regional governments are subordinate to each other, but rather the two
levels of government are coordinate and equal.” Where also set out
conditions that can make a federal constitution/system succeed. According
to him the component units must be fairly equal in size and population so
as to prevent one unit from dominating the other or a combination of two
or more units, from dominating the entire federation. As he puts it:
It is undesirable that one or two units in a federation should be so powerful
that they can overrule the others and bend the will of the Federal
Government to itself. There must be some sort of reasonable balance,
which will ensure that all the units can maintain their independence within
the sphere allotted to them and that no one can dominate others.
J. S. Mill elaborated on this principle thus:

It is essential in a federation that there should not be any one state so much
powerful than the rest as to be capable of vying in strength with many of
them combined. If there be such a one it will insist on master of the joint
deliberations, if there be two, they will be irresistible when they agree; and
whenever they differ everything will be decided by a struggle for
ascendancy between the rivals. While the American federal constitution
can be said to have met this requirement, the Nigerian federal constitution
in the First Republic during which the Northern region bestrode the entire
federation like a colossus clearly violated this principle. The states creation
exercises undertaken by the successive military regimes in 1967, 1976,
1987, 1990 and 1996 were meant to redress the imbalance inherent in the
colonial inherited Nigerian federation. Federalism encourages unity in
diversity and a very potent instrument for national integration in plural
societies. It is an ideal system for large and heterogeneous countries like
the United States, China, Russia and India. It is a delicate arrangement that
requires mutual tolerance. In any federal state, the role of the judiciary or
the court is vital to ensure that no level encroaches on the other. Its major
disadvantage is that it is expensive to run because of duplication of
government departments.
6. Confederal Constitution
Confederation is a league or union of many sovereign states for a common
purpose. A confederation has also been defined as that arrangement in
which two or more sovereign and independent states agree to come
together to have a central but weak government. In other words, the term of
a confederation applies to a union of states, which is less binding in
character than a federation. Examples of confederal states are the United
States between 1776 and 1789, the United Netherlands in 1579, the
German constitutions of 1815 to 1867 and 1867 to 1871(before and after
the unification of Prussia with other German states).
The features of a confederal constitution include: The states in a
confederation would not lose their separate identity through the political
arrangement and retain the right to secede. The supreme power belongs to
the co-ordinate states. Therefore, the coordinate states dominate the central
government; the constitution may not be rigid and the central authority is
weak while confederal units are strong and powerful. Judging from the
experience of the United States, confederation has not proved to be a
successful model, even for those who adopted it after the Americans
discarded it in 1789. Other examples of confederacy are the African Union
(AU), Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS),
European Union (EU), and the Commonwealth of Nations, to mention a
few.
Importance of constitution
A constitution is critical to the understanding of government and how the
citizens of a country are governed. It is an instrument for the consolidation
of state power. A constitution traditionally explains the powers and
limitations of the government in a society. With this, citizens can measure
the performance of the government from time to time. Being the
embodiment of the general will or the legal sovereign in a state, provisions
of a constitution are supreme and superior to any other laws in the land.
Every other law in the land must be consistent with the constitution;
otherwise, such law or laws shall be null and void to the extent of its
inconsistency.
A constitution serves as a medium for setting out the code of conduct or
pattern of behavior acceptable in a given society. More importantly, the
constitution in a state usually establishes the direction of the ship of the
state by setting out the fundamental objectives and directive principles of
state policy. The constitution not only defines the power of each organ, it
demarcates the responsibilities of each, thereby eliminate unnecessary
frictions or overlapping of functions among different levels or agencies of
the government.
A constitution may however not anticipate every situation that may arise.
As a result, at the point of drafting not all sentiments, assumptions and
aspirations of the people may find expression in a written form. For this
reason, a distinction is often made between the letters and the spirit of a
constitution. Being a product of human engineering a constitution is not TOP

necessarily a perfect document, and may contain some defects or

anomalies, or ambiguities, including lacunas that may not come into light
until it is put into practice. At times, judicial interpretations might be
required to make such provisions more precise; at other times, an
amendment may be necessary to remove ambiguities. In Nigeria, for
example, the controversy over the off-shore/on- shore dichotomy and the
seizure of the funds due to the local governments in Lagos state were not
resolved until the intervention of the Supreme Court. Similarly, the
decision by the two chambers of the National Assembly on February 9,
2010, to pass separate resolutions investing the Vice President Goodluck
Jonathan with the power of Acting President of Nigeria was one example
of finding a political solution to a constitutional crisis. As Senate
President, David Mark surmised:
The doctrine of necessity requires that we do what is necessary when faced
with a situation that was not contemplated by the constitution...In doing so
we have maintained the sanctity of our constitution as the ultimate law of
the land.
The constitution of any country usually takes its cue from its peculiar
circumstances and is also a reflection of the aspirations of its people. It is
without doubts the most important document in any political system and
for this reason; a constitution is sometimes referred to as the ground norm.
It is almost a settled principle of political discourse that in a country where
there is widespread respect for the provisions of the constitution, a regime
of constitutionalism is said to have been enthroned, which in turn will help
to generate national consensus and promote political stability.
Other Importance of Constitution includes:
Each state has a Constitution which lays down the organization, powers
and functions of the Government of the State. The government always
works according to the Constitution, no law or order of the government can
violate the Constitution. Constitution is the supreme law and all
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government institutions and members are bound by it.

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Aristotle and other scholar’s classifications on constitutions

Meaning of a constitution
A constitution is a basic design, which deals with the structure
and powers of the government. It also includes rights and duties of
citizens. Very often ‘constitution’ is understood as a document which
has been written and accepted at a particular time, but this is not
the true meaning of constitution, constitution may be written or may
be unwritten.
Sometimes it is found as an established body of rules, maxims,
traditions and practices in accordance with which its government is
organized and its powers and exercised. Many political thinkers have
tried to define the term ‘constitution’.
Aristotle explains, “Constitution as the way in which, citizens or the
component parts of the state are arranged in relation to one another”.
According to Woolsey, a constitution “the collection of principal
according to which he powers of the government rights of the
government and relations between the two are adjusted.”
Bryce defines it as “the aggregate of laws and customs under
which the life of state goes on the complex totality of laws
embodying the principles and rules whereby the community is
organized, governed and held together”.
Herman Finer says, - “the state is a human grouping in which rules a
certain power relationship between its individuals and associated
constituents. This power relationship is embodied in political
institutions. The system of fundamental political institutions is the
constitution the autobiography of the power relationship.”

Bouncier defines a constitution as “the fundamental law of a state

directing the principles upon which the government is founded and
regulating the exercise of the sovereign powers, directly to what
bodies of persons thee powers shall be confined and the manner of
their exercise.
George Cornewell Lewis describes the constitution as “the
arrangement and distribution of sovereign power in the community or the
form of the government”.
Charles Baregeaud says – “A constitution is the fundamental law
according to which the relations of individuals or normal persons to the
community are determined. It may be a written instrument, a precise
text or series of text enacted at a given time by a sovereign power or it
may be the more or less definite results of a series of legislative acts,
ordinances, judicial decisions, precedents and customs of diverse origin
and of unequal and importance”.
Sir James Mackintosh says “By the constitution of a state,
means the body of those written or unwritten fundamental laws
which regulate the most important rights of the higher
magistrates the most essential privileges of the subjects.
According to Leacock - “constitution is the form of government”.

Austin has defined constitution saying, “That it fixes the structure of

supreme government.”
Hence, on the basis of above definitions we can say that,
Constitution is the fundamental law of the land
Constitution may be written or unwritten

Constitution deals with the composition and power of the government.

Constitution deals with the rights of citizens.
Constitution deals with the relationship between the governments and
governed.
Constitution is the supreme law that must be followed
Need for a constitution
Since the days of American Revolution (1776) the idea of a
constitution as an essential and important document was firmly rooted
in every country. Today constitution has become the foundation of
democracy. A constitution is needed for a variety of reasons listed
below:
1. To curb the powers of the government by fundamental
law.
2. To protect the rights of individuals
3. To establish the principle of ‘rule of law’.
4. To save the state from anarchy.
5. To define the operation of the sovereign power of the
state.
6. To limit the vagaries of present and future generations.
Amendment of a constitution
A written constitution must have procedure for amending the
constitution and it is regarded as an essential part of every written
constitution. The method of amendment only guarantees application and
sacredness of the constitution. The method of amendment may be simple
or may be a Complex and difficult procedure.
If it is simple and enables the political sovereign to express its
will; there can be no conflict between the actual conditions and
legal organization. But an easy method of amendment may lead to
instability.
If the constitution is having difficult method of amendment it may
result in one of the two things.
First there may grow up extra-legal institutions fully supported by
public opinion.
Secondly, if such extra-legal institutions are not allowed to grow, the
consequence may be a revolt.
The method of amendment must be such that it should neither give
instability nor generate revolution. As Jennings says “A constitution
has to work not only in the environment in which it was drafted but
also centuries later. It must therefore be capable of adoption to new
conditions as they rise.”
Essentials of a good constitution
It is possible that a particular type of constitution may prove useful
for a particular country, but for another country it may not prove
useful. For example a federal constitution is suitable for India, but it
is not suitable for Nepal, Myanmar and Pakistan. It depends on the
social and economic set up of the country. Every state has a right
to decide and frame its own constitution. A good constitution must
have the following qualities.
1. Clarity or definiteness: Every clause of the constitution
should be written in simple language. It should express its
meaning clearly without leaving any scope for confusion.
2. Brevity: The constitutions should not be too lengthy. It should
contain only important things. But this brevity should not lead
to gap in Constitution, leaving some issues unexplained.
3. Comprehensiveness: The constitution should be applicable
to the whole country. If it is a federation then it must
demarcate the structure and power of the center and provincial
governments.
4. Flexibility: The constitution should not be too rigid to
hinder the process of amendment when needed.
5. Declaration of rights: A good constitution must contain
the fundamental rights of the people. In the constitution of
countries like India, Russia, China, America and Japan such
declarations have been made.
6. Independence of judiciary: Independence of judiciary is
another quality of a good constitution. The judiciary should
function freely and act as the guardian of the fundamental
rights of the people without fear.
7. Directive Principles of State Policy: Directive Principles of
the State Policy must find a mention in a good constitution
because it helps the creation of a welfare state. These
principles also serve as a blessing for the government.
Most of the qualities above are available in the constitution of India.
Types of constitutions
The classification of the constitutions is not a modern idea. There are
different bases on which the constitutions are classified. Aristotle
for the first time adopted a scientific method to classify the
constitution.
His classification is based on the study of 158 constitutions of the
ancient world. He has classified the constitution on the basis of
location of sovereign power and end or purpose towards which the
power was directed. States which seed the good life of all are true or
normal states. Those which deviate from that e n d a r e p e r v e r t e d
s t a t e s . His c l a s s i f i c a t i o n i s i l l u s t r a t e d by the following table.
Form of Pure Perverted
Constitution form* form*
Rule by One Monarc Tyranny
hy
Rule by Two Aristocr Oligarchy
acy
Rule by Many Polity Democracy

* Pure form of constitution seeks common welfare whereas perverted

form ignores common welfare.
After Aristotle several other political thinkers have tried to classify the
constitution. Among them the most scientific and acceptable to
modern states is that of Leacock. Modern constitutions are classified in
the following manner.
1. Written and unwritten constitutions 2. Rigid
and flexible constitutions
The concept of Constitutionalism:
According to George Will, “The essence of constitutionalism in a democracy is not merely to
shape and condition the nature of majorities, but also to stipulate that certain things are
impermissible, no matter how large and fervent a majority might want them.”
Constitutionalism is a legal philosophy that describes the nation's people's lives, values,
beliefs, and ideas. The liberal concept of constitutionalism rests on two main pillars, i.e.,
limited Government and guarantee of individual rights. It is a liberal idea in Western
countries that states that government should be governed according to the law. Other ideas
based on this concept include government accountability, constitutional democracy,
separation of powers, rule of law, and judicial independence, to name a few. In short words,
Constitutionalism is a complex concept with a long history that binds politicians exercising
their authority to the constraints of a higher law.
Classification of constitutionalism: Constitutionalism, or the restriction of government power,
can be accomplished in two ways. Political constitutionalism and legal constitutionalism, to
be specific. Legal constitutionalism: The concept of constitutional rights is central to legal
constitutionalism. The power of the governing system is limited by legal constitutionalism.
Governments can abuse their power in accordance with their discretionary powers, and they
can also interfere with people's rights and liberties, namely mistreating opposing political
parties or their supporters. To prevent such mistreatment, legal constitutionalism is in effect.
Political constitutionalism: In this concept, political power of government is limited through
political mechanism. This concept established some institutions by which the power will be
limited. It includes, decision making process, the electoral system can be chosen,
Presidentialism or Parliamentary democracy options, can choose between a unitary or a
federal government, mechanism of separation of power and check and balance, mechanism
for ensuring accountability of executive branch and legislative branch of government of
government through judicial review. Constitutionalism have the principles of rule of law to
limited the power of government and to protect the individual’s freedom and as well as right.

Constitution vs. Constitutionalism: The terms constitution and constitutionalism are

synonymous, but the latter encompasses much more than merely adherence to and execution
of the national constitution. The creation of a constitution is the result of years of progress
and evolution, but, in some cases like in Japan the constitution can be imposed by invading or
opposing forces, and may not embody the key values and principles that characterize a
society. Building on the differences outlined in the previous section, we can identify few
other aspects that differentiate constitution and constitutionalism. The key distinction
between constitution and constitutionalism is that a constitution is a set of fundamental
principles by which a nation or state is governed, whereas constitutionalism refers to
adherence to a constitutional governance system. Constitution mainly refers to legal
document which set forth rules to maintain the rights and obligations for its government and
its people, Constitutionalism rendered to ideology to establish institutions and beliefs to save
the people from arbitrary use of power. The basic purpose of a constitution is to successfully
apply the rules, and constitutionalism serves as a checking for the attainment of that goal.
Constitution refers to a specific noun, whereas constitutionalism refers to a wide concept. The
concept of constitutionalism has arisen around the principle that the government's authority is
drawn from and limited by a system of rules and regulations, which has altered greatly since
the earliest examples seen in ancient Greece. The constitution and constitutionalism as a
document established the orders for establishing a democratic way to choose a lawful
government, while constitutionalism limited the discretionary power of government and
established judicial review functions to check on the use of governmental organs' power.