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Journal of Public Administration (JOPA)

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ISSN : 2
Complexities of the oversight role of legislatures

Author: S.M. Madue

Affiliation: University of South Africa

Source: Journal of Public Administration, 2022-06-02 09:36:52

Accreditation: Department of Higher Education and Training(DHET)



Abstract: Complexities of the oversight role of legislatures

The legislative branch of government is responsible for law making, exercising oversight over the executive, facilitating public participation and promoting cooperative governance. Legislatures are mandated to ensure that laws passed are properly implemented to address the needs of the citizens. This is a crucial role of legislative oversight. In order to legitimise this important role of the legislatures, some conditions must be met. For example, there needs to be a certain degree of cooperation between the branches in policy making (each side must be willing to bargain and compromise in order to get some policy benefits), the legislature must have some capacity to monitor the executive, and the executive needs to be willing to comply with legislative enactments. In this article, it is argued that these conditions have not always applied in the legislative arena. Since legislative oversight is viewed as a key agency of democratic le