How was the Roman government failing to meet the needs of the people?

Over the long course of Roman history, there were surely
many times when the Roman government failed to meet the needs of its people.  If you are
asking about one particular time period, please let us know so that we can give you an
answer that refers to that time period.

One of the
best-known times when the government failed to meet the needs of the people was at the
time just before the fall of the Republic.  During this time, the tremendous expansion
of Roman territory had led to a huge gap between rich and poor and a situation in which
many people felt that their rights were being abused by those who held political
power.

For example, during this time, the military was
becoming much more powerful.  Many military leaders demanded land that they could give
out as rewards to their troops.  Because the military had power and the common people
did not, land was often taken from the common people and given to the military.  This
led to a great deal of strife within Rome as poor people who had been dispossesed moved
into the city.  This strife eventually helped lead to the fall of the Roman
Republic.

This was one very important way in which the
Roman government failed to meet the needs of its people at a very important time in its
history.