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Costa Rica Government

The constitution of Costa Rica, defined in 1949, clearly states that the country is a democratic republic, and guarantees the right to own property, the right to petition, freedom of speech, and the right to habeas corpus. The country guarantees all citizens and foreigners alike, equality before law. As is the case with the United States, the government is divided into three independent branches of the Executive, Legislative and Judiciary. The three branches have a separation of powers, where there can be no delegation of work between the different branches.

Costa Rica government - Segmentation

The Executive segment consists of the president, two vice presidents, and a cabinet comprising 17 members called the Council of Government. The two Vice Presidents and the ministers usually are in charge of departments like the Ministry of Education, Health, and Tourism etc. The legislative body, consisting of 57 members, is unicameral.

All the powers are vested in the National Assembly. The assembly has the power to make changes to the budget drafts made by the President, and also appoint the comptroller general, who keeps an eye on public expenditure and prevents the chances of over spending by the Executive department.

Presidential decisions can be vetoed by a majority two-third vote in the assembly, and the assembly is the only body that has the right to declare war. The members are all elected by proportional representation. An amendment to the constitution, affected in 1969, stated that the incumbent president or a former president might not be reelected. Besides, they should not be priests, but secular citizens.

The president however has tools such as the executive decree to override the unanimous decisions of the National Assembly. Costa Rican Presidents have taken advantage of this decree many a time in the past. The Legislative Assembly elects the judges in the Supreme Court for six-year terms each. They can be reelected and remain in office for the rest of their lives.

At present, there are 24 judges in the Supreme Court. These elected judges select judges for the civil and penal courts. The courts also appoint members of the Special Electoral Tribunal, an independent body, with members serving six year terms once elected. This body looks after each election and has powers to control the security forces for a certain time surrounding the electoral process. The courts have gone a long way in putting checks on, and curbing presidential power.

Organization of the Provinces

A constitutional chamber was created in 1989, to revise all the laws of the country to ensure that they were in spirit of the constitution. The body has lost a lot of significance since it delays the passing of laws. The country has seven provinces, ruled by a governor appointed by the President. The provinces, subdivided into 81 cantons, are divided into 421 counties, ruled by municipal councils. The population of each province determines the number of deputies the province will have.

The public has very little trust and reliance on the power at the governor and municipality level. The main control currently lies with the central government. The municipal councils are now busy with functions like that of garbage collection, and the maintenance of streets.
 

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