UGBS 105

PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION, ETHICS &

ACCOUNTABILITY
 Defining ethics
The concept Ethics is not:
The same as feelings. Feelings provide important information for
our ethical choices.
Religion: because many people are not religious but ethics
applies to everyone.
Following the law: a good system of law does incorporate many
ethical standards, but law can deviate from what is ethical
Following culturally accepted norms
A science: just because something is scientifically or
technologically possible, it may not be ethical to do it.
What then is ethics?
Ethics is about standards of behavior that tell us how
human beings ought to act in the many situations in which
they find themselves as:
Friends
Parents
Children
Citizens
Teachers
Professionals and so on.
It is a body of principles or standards of human conduct
that govern the behavior of individuals and groups
 Cont.
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).
 Cont.
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.
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 and 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.
 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.
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
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 political corruption and loss of control in
government due mainly to bad supervision
Greed/selfishness/pleasure for
profit
There is desire for gain because there is worship of
money as a measure of success.
There is lack of personal integrity and moral life.
Because integrity doesn’t allow for partiality-It
involves wholeness
Drivers of high 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.
 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
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
Openness: The public must have access to officials files
because without the public having access to document covering
the issues like declared assets, officials mail conceal private
gains
Cont.
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. We need
to use common sense and judgment to depart from the rule
of life. “BUT THE TRUTH IS THAT GIFTS CORRUPT”.
Improved conditions of service: 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.
Cont.
Discourage unofficial use of public office: The use of
public office/political party positions for personal
enrichment is a major source of unethical behavior.
People can use their positions in job and political
parties to facilitate personal activities and to enrich
themselves. People can become rich in the political
party of the day as a result of their position in the party
or in government.
Exhibit ethical leadership: To promote and mention
high ethical values, the leader must be e.g. He should
preach ethical values by his actions
Cont.
Enforcement of disciplinary procedures: People
should not hesitate to sack/(discipline/involuntary
resignation) those who go against the rules and
regulations of the organization to deter others. After
this such people should be blacklisted and should not
be allowed to undertake further public job.
Select professionally qualified employees: The
assumption here is that a professional must have some
ethical values related to the profession in question.
This is because all professionals have something to
defend and any attempt to falsify would make their
minds/conscience attack them than un-professionals.
 Ethical Dilemma & conflict of
interest
An ethical dilemma is a complex situation that often involves an
apparent mental conflict between moral imperatives, in which to
obey one would result in transgressing another.
In one way or the other, officials are in most cases caught in a
tight corner in an attempt to make decisions at the workplace.
Whenever individuals are found in a position where they need to
take crucial decisions, they usually find themselves in an apparent
conflict whether to do this or that.
This scenario may also be described as predicament.
 As public officials or public servants, making decisions in most
cases may be difficult as individuals belong to various or several
sects.
These sects appear to get some benefits or preferential
treatment from officials.
 Conflict of interest
“Two rams cannot drink from the same bucket at the same time, they will
lock horns”; and it is also said that if you use your two eyes to look inside
the bottle, it is the nose that usually sees inside.
 The above suggests that public administrators should not foil
themselves in two contrasting positions/stakes where one of such would
necessarily affect their judgments or decisions and actions as public
servants.
 Conflict of interest is found in all situations and among different players;
lawyers, judges, Public Administrators, referees etc. all come face to face
with conflict of interest.
 But it is heightened particularly in public sector management because
the need to maintain public trust and confidence is critical.
 Defining conflict of interest
“A ‘conflict of interest’ involves a conflict between the public
duty and private interests of a public official, in which the public
official has private ... interests which could improperly influence
the Performance of their official duties and responsibilities.”
(OECD 2003)
 A conflict of interest can arise from avoiding personal losses
as well as gaining personal advantage – whether financial or
otherwise.
 A conflict of interest involves a conflict between a public
official’s duty to serve the public interest, and the public official’s
private interests.
It occurs when a public official is in a position to be influenced,
or appear to be influenced, by a private interests when doing
your job.
A conflict of interest can involve avoiding personal
disadvantage as well as gaining personal advantage.
 Cont.

 Conflicts of interest cannot always be avoided or prohibited.

Unavoidable conflicts of interest need to be identified,
disclosed and effectively managed.
Conflicts of interest are not wrong in themselves but how they
are managed is very important.
Public officials are also private individuals, and there will be
occasions when your own private interests may come into
conflict with your public duty to put the public interest first at all
times.
A Conflict of interest situation arises when an office holder
places himself in a position that results in a rivalry between his
personal and official interests.
 Types of conflict of interest.
Depending on the nature, conflicts of interest may be classified
into three namely actual, perceived or potential.
An actual conflict of interest involves a direct conflict between
a public official’s current duties and responsibilities and existing
private interests.
A perceived or apparent conflict of interest can exist where it
could be perceived, or appears, that a public official’s private
interests could improperly influence the performance of their
duties – whether or not this is in fact the case.
A potential conflict of interest arises where a public official has
private interests that could conflict with their official duties in
the future.
 CAUSES OF UNETHICAL
BEHAVIOUR
Corruption
Societal standards
The economic environment / low remuneration
Political will / patronage
Greed and selfishness
The pleasure for profit
Non-enforcement of rules / law
Indiscipline
Paternalism
Pressure from the extended family system
 Forms of Unethical Practices
Wrongful award of contracts (corruption)
Manufacture of unwholesome products
Illegal Business Practices
Method of Management (e.g. Organised
criminal management, e.g. Enron’s
Accounting Scandal).
Sex for business opportunities,
employment, etc
Potential Managerial Temptation
Avoidance of work (eg. lackadaisical attitude);
Hiring friends;
Consuming excessive perks (e.g. purchasing
extravagant office furniture);
Building empires (make the firm as large as
possible even though it may hurt the firm’s per
share value);
Taking no risks or changes to avoid being fired;
and
Having short-run horizon if the manger is near
retirement.
 The Concept of corruption
Whilst US$94 billion was required to meet MDG targets
related to education, health and income, poverty, an
estimated US$ one trillion was lost through illicit financial
flows every year (UNDP 2011)
Corruption is generally regarded as one of the most
serious obstacles to development.
 Corruption defined
The abuse of office includes nepotism, influence peddling,
forgery, false accounting in public institutions and others.

Corruption is in two main folds; first, it is an abuse of an

influential position for private gain, secondly; it is an
exploitation of a system for securing unmerited advantage.

Brooks (1974, p,46) defined corruption as "the intentional

under-performance or neglect of a recognized duty, or
unwarranted exercise of power, with the motive of gaining
some advantage more or less directly."
 TYPES OF CORRUPTION
Petty Corruption : This involves relatively minor
amounts of money or gifts changing hands. One of the
parties could be a relatively minor official in an
organization where the bribery is taking place.
A key characteristic of petty corruption is that it takes
place many times. (High frequency). Included in this type
are bribes to traffic police.
Grand Corruption :Corruption involving substantial
amounts of money engaged in by businessmen and
government officials of senior rank and the figures
involved are significant.
Kickbacks to government officials for public works
contracts fall under this category.
 TYPES OF CORRUPTION
Looting (‘Lootocracy’) : This is the type of corruption that
involves the illegal transfer of money or goods from one
person (or destination) to another.
It usually involves scams/scandals that are so huge that when
they have been successfully concluded, they have
macroeconomic implications fairly quickly such as banks
collapsing, inflation rising and declining exchange rate.

Systemic/Routine Corruption :This type of corruption occurs

where bribery is regularly and frequently experienced.
It takes place where wrongdoing has become the norm and
common where offices that have regulatory services such as
licenses, permits, immigration are issued.
 TYPES OF CORRUPTION
Political / Bureaucratic Corruption: This
type involves violation of elections laws,
campaign finance regulations and conflicts
of interest rules for parliamentarians.
Also found where power is highly
centralized in a patronage-based political
system and friends are rewarded.
Funding comes from forced or voluntary
business contributions or diverting
government revenue or donor aid
 Forms of corruption
Bribery / Illegal contributions
Embezzlement
Fraud
Intimidation
Extortion
The abuse of power
Conflict of interest
Nepotism
Money laundering
Identity theft
 Causes of corruption
Unfair or poor working conditions
Inefficient regulatory regime
Excessive bureaucratic structures /bottlenecks
Kinship, tradition, gift-giving
Patron-client network
Political interference
Unnecessary materialism (Greed and selfishness)
Non-enforcement of the law, etc
 Effects of corruption on National
development
Corruption leads to low productivity which is a potential
source of poverty,
It is a disincentive to productive work and domestic
savings if one can benefit with little or no work,
Corruption leads to low quality social infrastructure
Corruption limits investment and retards growth.
Corruption affects democratic governance
Investors are asked for bribes before setting up
enterprises and this becomes a tax to them and
discourages investment.
 UNETHICAL BEHAVIOURS

Disclosure by public officials

Public education or advocacy,
Societal pressure
Anti-corruption procedures and legislations
Improved conditions of service
Training and public Education
Stiffer punishment
Enforcement of code of conduct
Flexibility in procedures / process
Vibrant Media
Political will and strong leadership
Empower the people/whistleblowing