CHAPTER 10: PURPOSES AND FUNCTIONS OF STATES

A. Purposes of the State – the purposes of the state refer to those aims for which it was
created as a social institution. In order to understand the various purposes of the state, the
different theories on state origins should be borne in mind. The following enumerates the
different purposes of the state as envisioned by different authorities on the subject matter:

1. Establishment of order –the primary purpose of a state is the establishment of peace and
order in the society. This includes the protection of its constituents or the people under it from
foreign invasion and internal or domestic violence, under the guise of promoting and upholding
justice. The moral reason for the existence of the state mainly depends upon the success or
failure for it to implement or manifest the certain pre conditions stated above. The attainment
of these primary objectives must always be in sync with the individual liberties being accorded
to the citizens on the ground that order and security achieved at the expense of individual
freedom would inevitably convey a fact or a situation in which the state is said to have control
over its colonized people or citizens.

2. The promotion of individual welfare – almost all modern theories of state purposes and
functions recognize the importance of the individual person. Sharing the universal view of the
state existing for the individual not the other way around. Controversy arises whether an
individual fares better on decisions made by him or that made for him. Based on the
dictatorship theory it shows that man has great need over the decisions made on his behalf
since the state identifies well the needs and welfare of its people, while in democratic theory it
does recognize the rationality of men hence in a democratic society it provides for the best set
up for men to meet and reach their own individual potentials or self-fulfillment.

3. The promotion of general welfare – another end or purpose of the state is the promotion of
the general welfare. This basically includes the care for the common public interests, which has
been defined by some authorities on the matter as “what men choose if they saw clearly,
thought rationally, acted disinterestedly and benevolently”. Public interest is best determined
by reconciling the interests of individuals, groups, and the society as a whole. The state
promotes it by providing concerted action in achieving goals which individuals and groups
cannot realize by themselves.

4. The promotion of morality – the moral well being of the citizens form essential focus of the
state too. For the reason social life is not only physical, but also moral as well as spiritual. Man
is a living organism however he does not live on bread alone so to speak but his needs span
more than just the basic that distinguishes him from lower life forms. Without morality man
and the society built by men would be no better than a herd of beasts. Based on this the state
punishes or penalizes the criminal or vicious acts and rewards those of good deeds being
manifested by its citizens.

B. Functions of States – the functions of the state cover all those which it must perform in
order to achieve its goals. Some authorities on the subject mention only two – the essential and
the non-essential functions while others mention three – essential, service, business functions.
The state performs these functions through its instrumentality the government.
1. Essential Functions – the essential functions are those which the state must perform in order
to uphold its power and authority to affirm its statehood existence. This function basically
involves the determination of threefold relations; state to other states, state to its citizens,
citizens among themselves. Because of this the state must determine its relations with other
states in times of peace and war, determine its relations with its people relative to their share
in the exercise of political power, their freedom from governmental interference, and their
action that may in fact constitute a threat to state security, as well as to regulate the relations
of the citizens with one another to secure unto them peace, social order, and justice.

The activities that the state may engage in pursuance of its essential functions are;

1. The maintenance of armed forces for defense against foreign invasion.

2. The maintenance of police forces for the suppression of lawless violence and apprehension of
criminals.

3. The maintenance of the courts of law for the prosecution and punishment of crimes and the
settlement of legal disputes.

4. The maintenance of foreign service for the conduct of international relations.

5. The maintenance of tax-collecting and record-keeping agencies for the execution of other
functions.

2. Service Functions – the service functions are those undertakings which, although not
essential are natural and normal for the state to perform. The performance by the state of
the service functions does not encroach upon the domain of individual activities, but instead
promote the general welfare. The activities of the government in this field varies, some
includes care for the poor and incapable, the establishment and maintenance of education,
sanitation, public parks, might as well include the operation of postal service, construction of
roads, bridges, canals, harbors, and other infrastructures for commerce and trade, and finally
the regulation of occupation and business affected with public interest.

3. Business Functions – the business functions are the endeavors which the state may engage
in not only principally for the purpose of providing services to the people but secondarily in
order to derive certain profit. The state undertakes these different activities for varied
reasons. One of which can be the insufficiency of available private capital, or because the
government wants to prevent more evils that usually result from private control over certain
enterprises, or on such belief that the government can provide for the very same social
functions more efficiently than private entities.

C. Purposes of the State and the People – based on the old Aristotelian saying that “He who is
without a polis is either a God or a beast”, that being premised, people can neither
disassociate themselves from the state nor can the state disassociate itself from the people,
hence the people and the state are one and the same that no man can be outside the state.
That being the case the state cannot be apart from the people and vice versa, therefore the
state cannot have a purpose other than that different or contrary to the purpose of its
people or constituents.

D. Purpose of the People, State and Government – basically the government is just an
instrumentality or agent of the state. Being such an agent, it is supposed to accomplish only
the object of its principal. However, due to the existence of a separate personality possessed
by the principal and of the agent, similarly by the state and the government respectively, it
may happen that the government may pursue a purpose different from the purpose of the
state and of the people.