Ethics in Public Administration

Ethics, in public administration, is the practice of doing good while performing Civil Duties. It refers to taking a course of action in compliance with rules or code of conduct established for such an administrative work along with making moral judgments, which are based on discretion. Their actions must be manifested based on human values like honesty, impartiality, integrity, diligence, economy, respect for both – law and people along with effectiveness, responsiveness, and accountability.

An administrator should follow the law and rules that are framed to govern and guide various categories of policies and decisions. They could be summarized as following maxims:

Responsibility & accountability An administrator must hold himself morally responsible for his actions & for the use of his discretion while making decisions.

Work commitment Must perform his work with involvement, intelligence & dexterity.

Excellence An administrator must ensure the highest standards of quality in his administrative decisions.

Fusion An administrator must have a fusion of individual, organizational & social goals. This will help them evolve unison of ideals and imbibe the same in their behavior, ensuring a commitment to the fusion.

Utilitarianism directs him to make policies in such a way so that these lead to the greatest good (happiness, benefits) of the greatest number

Compassion channelizes him to demonstrate compassion for the poor, the disabled & the week without violating any laws.

National interest & justice reminds him that the impact of his actions would be on his nation's strength and prestige and directs him to show respect to the principles of equality, equity, fairness, impartiality & objectivity.

Transparency & integrity help the people to understand the reason behind any decision and also direct him to undertake an administrative action on the basis of honesty & not use his power, position, and discretion to serve his personal interest

EXAMPLES

• Establishment of Lokayukta
• Establishment of RTI Act
• Citizen's Charters.
• Ethics and code of conduct for public employees
• Establishment of Vigilance Commissions

SOME EXAMPLES OF PUBLIC ADMINISTRATORS

Armstrong Pame One of the most popular names, also fondly known as ‘Miracle Man’, IAS Armstrong Pame, is known for getting a 100 km stretch of road constructed, in Manipur, without any government aid. He portrays the values of Love & compassion, which makes him of the most celebrated Administrative officers in our country.

OP Chaudhary A 2005 batch IAS officer. During his duty as a collector, district of Dantewada (Chhattisgarh) changed from being an underdeveloped area to a progressive district. His values of dedication and determination led to the huge success of his initiatives like Choolo Aasman, Tamannah, that were path-breaking and non-traditional.

Elements of Administrative Ethics

• Integrity
• Loyalty
• Honesty
• Efficiency
• Non-partisan attitude
• Humbleness
• Non corruptiveness
• Devotion to duty
• Sense of public good
• Neutrality
• Anonymity
• Impartiality
• Fairness
• Sincerity

Determinants of Ethics in Governance

Ethics in governance are dependent on the social, economic, political, cultural, legal-judicial and historical contexts of the country. Ethics, evolve over a long period of time and is influenced, by a variety of environmental factors, such as, historical, socio-cultural, legal-judicial, political and economical. More specifically;

• Precedents and traditions set by top administration.
• Communication pattern in the administrative system.
• Effectiveness of disciplinary actions on the civil servants
• Attitude of political bosses towards administration.
• Precedents and traditions established by the ministers and legislators.
• Soundness of service conditions of civil servants.
• Dynamics of internal relations in the organisation.
• Soundness of training programme organised to promote professional consciousness among  administrators.
• Attitude of general public towards administration

Significance of Ethics

Imparts knowledge

First and foremost, ethical norms help in gaining knowledge, analyzing the truth, and avoiding any chances of errors while examining any given circumstance or situation. Thus, ethics are most efficient for avoiding errors and prohibiting against fabricating, falsifying, or misrepresenting any data.

Enhances cooperation

Working in any organization or workplace demands great deal of cooperation and coordination amongst people at different levels and different fields. As such, different values are promoted and shared amongst these people, such as trust, accountability, mutual respect, and fairness. These only contribute to better and improved working conditions, growth, and success, in turn.

Assists in dealings

The right sense of thinking can help us deal with people on a daily basis in the right and positive manner. The absence of the right approach and wrong sense can only induce negative feelings, thereby affecting our communication with people as well. Ethics, which are built on trust, help in treating everyone as the children of GOD and love everyone. Hence, ethics that we pass onto others reveals the correct way of living.

Builds Public Support

By following proper ethical norms, they ensure building positive and strong public support. Say, for example, people are more likely to invest in a project or fund if they are guaranteed about the quality and integrity of the project. However, if they are unsure of the quality and growth, they probably will step back and look for another similar project that will fulfill their demand.

Promotes Moral & Social Values

Ethics are considered to be of utmost importance simply because they assist in promoting other significant moral and social values. As such, values like social responsibility, human rights, animal welfare, compliance with the law, and health and safety, are some that are supported through practicing proper ethics. Any flaw in our values will reduce our ability to achieve success in our endeavors. For example, a person who fabricates data in a clinical trial can harm or even kill patients.

Significance of administrative ethics:

• Check arbitrary activities of civil servants
• Promote sense of administrative responsibility
• Establish and promote correct relationship between the citizens and civil services
• Cultivate high standard of conduct among civil servants
• To preserve and promote social welfare ,public interest and common good
• To control that part of administrative powers and discretion which can not be controlled by formal laws , methods and procedures.
• To improve the efficiency and effectiveness of administrative process
• To strengthen the legitimacy and credibility of public administration
• To stabilize and harmonise the relation between the civil servant and the political executives
• To foster and maintain high moral among all category of civil services