18.

Define Federation and explain its four merits and demerits. 

A federation is a political entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing states or regions under a central government. In a federation, the self-governing status of the component states, as well as the division of power between them and the central government, are typically constitutionally entrenched and may not be altered by a unilateral decision of either party, the states or the federal political body.

Merits :

i. The central government has no true way to understand what issues and changes need to be made in every area of the country. This is why federalism is such a great advantage. The smaller branches of the local governments are right in the middle of the local society. They are better suited to deal with the true things that need to be changed.

iii. One huge characteristic of federalism is the checks and balances that are in play. By not allowing one body of government to hold all power over the country, you help to prevent any harmful and negative things from happening to some areas of the country. This is why having multiple sectors of the government is so important in federalism.

iv. In a democracy people have a large say in what happens within the government. Federalism creates smaller local governments, and allows people to feel even more involved in the decisions and every day workings of their government. This makes people much more proud and excited about their country.

Demerits:

i. The biggest problem that arises when you have two bodies in power is the power struggle. Each sector wants to assert their power over the other. This can cause things like strikes and make the government much less effective than it could normally be.

ii. The mark of a great country is just how patriotic and prideful the citizens are to be a part of it. Federalism, since it promotes smaller level of government, it also promotes smaller levels of pride. It can begin to pit one region against another and take away from the feeling of patriotism that should be present all over the entire country.

iii. With the responsibility of the government being shared, it becomes very easy for one sector to release responsibility for the other, and vice versa. This can become a very large problem because if something goes wrong, both sides of the government can relinquish control for the responsibility.

iv.With two bodies of power fighting against each other, many things result in a compromise on important issues. Compromise, while sometimes can be a good thing, when you are dealing with life changing and vital policies, compromises will just not cut it.