INTRODUCTION TO PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION

1. INTRODUCTION TO PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION Ethics in administration 12/11/12 Thomas Buabeng, PhD.

2. OUR TASK • What is ethics; • Competing ethical claims; • Factors affecting ethical behavior of public officials; • Causes of low ethical standards • Drivers of high ethical standards

3. Introduction • Ethics has become a major public concern in recent years. • The media has become obsessed with stories on issues perceived as involving unethical behavior particularly in public life. • This topic aims at introducing students to the main ethical issues that confront public sector officials and identify some of the strategies that may be employed in minimizing unethical behaviors in public administration. • It also seeks to introduce you to some mechanisms that may be adopted to prevent unethical behaviors and encourage ethical behaviors.

4. Cont. • Public administrators face significant ethical issues on a daily basis. • Some of these issues are strictly organizational • Several others are broader societies issues bothering on ethics and accountability. • In both situations, public administrators are required to employ ethical principles as a guide to review them. Some of the issues are as follows:

5. Cont. • Recruitment and selection • Disciplinary action or termination of appointment • Discrimination - salaries, wages and benefits packages • Downsizing–who goes first under retrenchment program? • Patronage vs. merit systems • Covering for the boss or colleague • Conflict of interest • Bribery • Influence wielding • Nepotism • Paternalism • Corruption • Morale and productivity • Use of public property for private use • Color, gender, race, conviction,

6. What is ethics? • Although there is no consensus in defining ethics it is generally accepted that it relates to: • An individuals conscience by which he/she will be directed to reach a fair decision on the basis of organizational values. • Philosophically, ethics oblige employees to choose between good and evil and directs them to act morally. • Ethics is a "system or code of conduct based on universal moral duties and obligations which indicate how one should behave; It deals with the ability to distinguish good from evil, right from wrong and propriety from impropriety" (Josephson 1989, 2).

7. What are morals? • Ethics originate from the idea that there are certain moral principles that are common to all human beings • There is therefore difference between ethics and morals • Morals are defined as those actions which are considered “right behavior” in any society. • A moral judgment often and centrally serves as a kind of injunction, spoken aloud or in one’s heart to others, or to oneself to behave or not to behave in a certain way. (Bernet, J 1993) • Ethical standards focus on individual judgment, action, and analysis of the employee’s perception of right and wrong.

8. Universality of ethical values • Generally, there appears to be a consensus as to a certain core ethical values that transcends cultures and time. • This helps to establish ethical norms and standards of moral conduct essential to the ethical life. • These values include, trustworthiness, integrity, fairness, and caring. • It is the universality of such ethical principles and values that gives support to the notion of moral absolutism, a view that there are eternal principles that exist beyond time and are always and everywhere applicable

9. Causes of low moral standards: society • It is not possible to have moral public service from immoral society. • This is because the public servant is recruited from the society so if the society is corrupt then the public servants will logically be corrupt. • Secondly, the public service engages in constant interaction with the society. i.e. there is organic linkage source is corrupt then public servants would always be corrupt. • Society standards are low, there are decay, permissiveness in society. • There is materialism in society. We do not frown on corruption, excessive materialism. • There is also the less influence of church/community influence on society. • Piety in the church is not transferred to the social life of people in the society.

10. Competition • There is much stress to succeed in life by cutting corners/short circuiting the system. • This can create a situation of lowering standards in ethics. E.g. In filling forms for jobs and seeking contracts people tell lies.

11. Economic condition • The difficulty of economic environment. • The economic conditions are bad the competition to survive is lowering the moral standards in society. There is therefore the conflict. • “Everybody is saying that times are hard, the times are bad. But who are the times, we are the times. Let us be good. Such as we are, such are the times. Let us be good and the times will be well”-ST AUGUSTINE

12. General state of political ethics • There is general disarray and general ethical confusion in the political system. • We are not sure and do not see anything wrong with people using political office to favor their near and dear ones • There is loss of control in government due mainly to bad supervision e.g. auditor-general’s report.

13. Greed • There is desire for gain because there is worship of money as a measure of success. • Individual selfishness-There is lack of personal integrity and moral life. Because integrity doesn’t allow for partiality-It involves wholeness • The pleasure for profit: To some people profit is their God and worship it. E.g. using Bromide for bread production and diluting fuel.

14. Factors which raise moral standards • Public disclosure:Publicity, wide media coverage and better communication. There should be “sunshine effect” as in the USA. Under this, because people wouldn’t like their actions to be given wide coverage or exposed and on that basis avoid such behavior. • Increased public concern: Public awareness and education is very important because sometimes people do not know the implications of their behavior. • A better informed public therefore lowers unethical behavior and raises moral standard.

15. Cont. • Societal pressure:Society must be organized in such a way that people would feel ashamed when caught involved in unethical behavior rather than today that when people are sacked for misappropriating the society still respects them most especially when they can support groups and individuals financially. • Government regulation:There must be legislation and government intervention though one cannot legislate against morality.eg prostitution. • However, there is the need for some kind of law.eg.on the sale of expired drugs, the use of bromide e.g. Should be punished

16. Cont. • Participation: The more people are involved in governance the more likely governance would serve the people rather than specified few. • Absence of active participation lead to apathy, lack of interest. This is because few people take advantage and corrupt or exploit the system • No Gift Policy: Gifts may be offered in good faith or they may be given in the hope of attaining special benefit either presently, the future or even used as a reward for past experience. • In all cases, all gifts must be refused because Gifts corrupts. • Improved conditions of service for employees. People who are fairly compensated develop a feeling of their worth as well as receiving tangible indication of the community’s estimations of their work. • If salary is low people can easily be influenced and corrupted which suggests that paying respectable salaries may help officials to resist bribes/gifts.