ADMINISTRATIVE ACCOUNTABILITY: A Review of the Evolution, Meaning and Operational Operationalizatio ization n of a Key Key Concept Concept in Public Administration (Led (Lediv ivin ina a V. Cari Carino no))
Activities of civil servants and public agencies must follow the will of the people to whom they are ultimately responsible. Evaluation of whether such action would be within or out of bounds of their authority. Discussion of ethics is a threat to the doctrine of the separation of church and state
Accountability Defined Herman Finer Degree of effective answerability which in a democratic government is ascertained “not by officials who decide their own course, but by the elected representatives of the public … (who) determine the course of action of public servants to the most minute degree that is technically feasible” Chandler and Plano A condition in which individuals who exercise power are constrained by external means and by internal norms. The institution of a system of checks and balances in an organization through which an administrator accounts for his stewardship of resources or authority. UN / Elia Armstrong The obligation on the part of public officials to report on the usage of public resources and answerability for failing to meet stated performance objectives
Accountability and Public Administration Accountability Traditional
Public Administration Traditional PA
Focus or Goal -Economy and efficiency of operations -Regularity of fiscal transactions and faithful compliance and adherence to legal requirements and administrative policies.
Managerial
Traditional PA Development Administration
Program
New Public Administration
-Search for theories that can describe and explain the management of economic growth. - Efficiency and economy in the use of public funds, property, manpower and other resources. -Responsiveness
programs. --Results
Process
Development PA
and effectiveness of
of government operations.
- Empowerment of the people as participants in the process of administration. -Procedures and methods of operation and systems that transforms inputs to outputs.
Bureaucratic vs Professional Norms Technical standards of the profession most relevant to the program may not completely coincide with or support all the standards of the bureaucracy The bureaucrat may be forced to choose between the criteria of his agency or those of his profession. Herman Finer – “to whom and for what one is responsible” Carl Friedrich – “to whom and for whom one feels responsible and behaves responsibly”
Discretion and Accountability Legal Decisions Procedure-based decisions that are dependent upon historical precedent
Capacity to limit arbitrary behavior
Ethics of civility
Bureaucrats become legalistic, which leads to goal displacement
Too much legalism may become a major factor inhibiting development
Moral Decisions Value-based decisions that are content and context-specific
Requires a technique to prove whether or not the bureaucrat tried to do as much as what is in his power to do according to his best understanding of public interest
Extrabureaucratic Standards and Irresponsible Behavior Putting the family above all others and cultural values may lead to decisions that are grossly unfair to people who are not beneficiaries of the particularistic allocations Intrusion of values is not the culprit in the commission of irresponsible behavior but what motivates people Most of the corruption are market-type transactions where greed for money and power is the primordial force.
Bureaucratic Reorientation Growth of Professionalism Course on Ethics Changing the Regulators COA & CSC to provide more information on their guiding norms and decisions Proactive role for the Tanodbayan Participation of the President and the legislature in the prevention and punishment of graft and corruption Citizen Involvement
Conclusion The concept of accountability is an integral whole, and fiscal accountability is part of, not apart from, the larger accountability of government and government officials to the people. All public officers and employees are accountable to the people for their overt acts, neglects or omissions while in government service. (Second Paragraph of Section 6 of GAAM, Vol. 1)
