PROBITY IN GOVERNANCE
Abstract: The aim of the people of the
country must be to makes a clean production and offer productive services. The basic needs of human
beings are water, air, and food. The
people can be true human beings only when they continue to remain humane, then
only people can live in harmony. A good
education can prepare youngsters as truly human beings.
Any organization
must be governed under some principles and norms. If the administrators remain truly committed
to ethics with service oriented thinking we can achieve our goals. ‘Probity in
governance is essential and vital factor
for an efficient and effective system and for a healthy socio-economic
development. Probity roughly means
integrity, uprightness and honesty.
Probity in procurement services rendered eliminates correct and
dishonest conduct.
The system demands probity on the part of
teachers and educational administrators.
In more detail probity is defined to be a combination of selflessness,
integrity, objectivity, accountability, openness, honesty and leadership. We are treating probity as an additive linear
combination of the constituents.
An attempt is made give a theoretical
treatment of the probity function and derive the properties. This will help
forge ahead and develop certain principles necessary for good
governance. It is expected that if the
administrators are committed to probity, productivity is assured.
I. Introduction:
Education
is something which has not been given sufficient importance by all the
governments in India since the time of
Independence.
Taking
Advantage of the buzz words
globalization, liberalization and privatization
some private managements have
been trying to offer some education.
Only a smaller percentage of private managements have put sincere efforts.
Which means a larger part of the
private managements started schools and colleges with selfish
motive of filling their pockets.
Clearly the globalization has not
been given a meaning except for the exploitation of the word and the
public. Many schemes with national and international schemes have
been introduced with govt., funds but
there is no regular monitoring of the
process.
The
main objective has been, offering the education to exploit the thinking, mind and
Quality is the present concern
of everyone associated with the education in engineering colleges. Individually
every one of us are concerned about the greater dilution/ reduction in values
and quality of engg., graduates produced
in the last 25 years. We are all
concerned with the aspiration that our produce must be able to take up the world engineering challenges and should
making good contributions to
society.
Governance
is a solution and not the problem. We need to follow an ethical code of
governance money of the public. It
is time now to make a serious & sincere
introspection, brain-storming of the teams, to streamline
and make good efforts to improve
or restore the earlier quality.
How
do we fill sufficient confidences in the youngster?
How
do we prepare and create a sincere mind-set in the student?
How
do prepare him for an initiative and
innovation in tackling the world engineering
challenges visualized by
NEC at large, and challenges for
India in particular. We need great efforts in this direction.
The
current educationists should display greater probity and transparency in the
execution/ implementation of good
curriculum..
There is a clear connection between the concepts of probity and
ethics. Ethics ‘is concerned about what is right, fair, just or good
and what we must do. Here it may be noted that we do not do as per what is most acceptable or expedient. It is
the quality of having strong moral principles,
commitment, honesty and decency. It is the Complete and confirmed integrity; uprightness.
An Improved governance requires an
integrated, long-term strategy built upon cooperation between government and
citizens.
There
is a need for greater participation of institutions. The participation must be in the form of
thought, intellectual effort to formulate the procedures and sincere execution
of the plans. . We should be interactive to formulate
procedures of which are legitimate, effective, and widely supported by
citizens. We are also concerned with the
civil society that is strong, open, and capable of playing a positive role in
politics and government.
WE need to set goals for better governance
with main challenges confronting efforts for greater reforms. The principles of
probity, ethics and good governance operate on many levels – from, the
individual, to the organization.
The
objective of the higher and professional educational institutions is the
advancement of the society. The essence
of good governance is its focus on governing mechanisms which does not rest on
recourse to the authority, and sanctions of Governments. ( Stokere, 1998) .
The concept of Good Governance is the creation
of a structure on an order which cannot be externally imposed, but is the
result of the interaction of a multiplicity of the governing actors (Kooiman,
1993).
Benefits of Good
Governance out lined by NPIU of the World bank [ ] are given.
It needs a
team work and greater devoted efforts of the players and the governing council
associated and is working exclusively on the plans, strategies and efforts for
GG. The team who decided to create an
excellence would be required to do a full time in working on the
strategies. A great necessity of good
communication, constructive unbiased criticism, trust, respect, greater
initiative and drive are demanded.
If Technology Education is viewed through
Systems Thinking:
I.
PROBITY IN IMPARTING EDUCATION:
Probity in governance is an essential and vital requirement for an
efficient and effective system of governance and for its socio-economic
development. The important
requisite for ensuring probity in governance is absence of corruption. The
other requirements are effective policies, rules and regulations governing
every aspect of public life and more importantly, an effective and fair
implementation of those policies, etc.
[ ]
Discipline implies inter
alia public and private
morality and a sense of honesty. While
in the West a man who rises to positions of higher authority develops greater
respect to principles, the opposite is
true in our country.
We need to discuss various measures which can be designed to
ensure probity in governance in and imparting engineering education .
Probity
means integrity, uprightness and honesty. Maintaining probity in procurement and
services involves more than simply
avoiding corrupt or dishonest conduct.
This means ethical behavior that upholds public values and ensures
impartiality, accountability and transparency. Transparency and accountability
in higher educational procurement give suppliers confidence to participate in
this marketplace. An ethical culture minimizes the cost of managing risks and
enhances confidence in procurement administration. Ensuring probity of action
is part of every procurement official’s duty, with the adoption of processes,
practices and behavior that enhance and promote higher education’s values and
interests.
For individuals, probity is about understanding the limits of
their authority and powers and acting within those limits. Those who are in the
service sector need to be conscious at
all times of the need to uphold the highest standards of conduct in their
dealings on the government’s behalf, which includes acting with integrity at
the same time avoiding conflicts of
interest. It is aimed at engineering students and anyone involved
in profession. Thus probity for students
means professional values and
fitness to practice. The faculty of an
educational institute are expected to be vigilant for behaviors that contravene
these policies. They must appreciate the
need to avoid and resist involvement in any situation that might create the
appearance or perception of impropriety.
The University is committed to
probity and good conduct in carrying out its business, in accordance with the
"seven principles of public life” (selflessness, integrity, objectivity,
accountability, openness, honesty and leadership). These attributes must
be integrated and signpost the related
policies that support this commitment.
1.
Selflessness: Holders of public office should act solely in terms
of the public interest. They should not do so in order to gain financial
or other material benefits for themselves, their family, or their friends. All selfish people
display a very uncaring attitude
and a strong “Me first” trait. Another
trait which selfish and conceited people show is being manipulative, scheming
and plotting most of the times. Another
conspicuous trait which all conceited and selfish people display is of being calculative and accumulators. Low self
esteem is another characteristic
displayed by selfish people that gives them a negative outlook towards life and
making them contemptuous of others in
general. A selfish person is highly self centered and self
obsessed. Hence Selflessness ,
S
= S {caring, non-manipulative,
Self esteem, non articulate of materials and arguments}
2. Integrity: Holders of public office should not place themselves
under any financial or other obligation to outside individuals or organisations
that might seek to influence them in the performance of their official
duties. Here
are some suggestions that will help once we decide to make integrity a
foundational value: 1. Root yourself in a moral
foundation. 2. Look for the positive. 3. Resist the temptation to
compartmentalize your life.
4. Determine to live for others ahead of yourself. 5. Participate in an active
accountability group.
6. Partner with
a friend where you need to make progress. 7. Be in the habit of sharing
everything with your wife.
8. Practice the habit of imagining the presence of someone whose opinion you
value. 9. Hold
your children accountable.
10. Practice having a "principle of the week."
So Integrity = I { moral foundation, Positive
outlook, Consistent in Thinking, Importance to others, participative nature,
Importance to every member of the team, Sharing , Value to others opinions }.
3.
Objectivity:
In carrying out
public business, including making public appointments, awarding contracts, or
recommending individuals for rewards and benefits, holders of public office
should make choices on merit. Objectivity
can be considered as some sort of "pure information", in the sense
that different people would have the same interpretation of it and would apply
it in the same way. Objectivity is a central philosophical concept, related to reality and truth,
which has been variously defined by sources. Generally, objectivity means the
state or quality of being true even outside of a subject's individual biases,
interpretations, feelings, and imaginings. A second, broader meaning of the
term refers to the ability in any context to judge fairly, without bias or
external influence.
Therefore OB
= OB{Imagination, Sate of quality, reality , truth, unbiased-ness, fair
judgment .
4.
Accountability: Holders of
public office are accountable for their decisions and actions to the public and
must submit themselves to whatever scrutiny is appropriate to their office.
The 8
traits of true accountability are 1. Do
what you say you are going to do, 2.
Take responsibility for your actions, 3.
Always take the blame when things don't go right, 4. Never use excuses as to why you couldn't
accomplish something, 5. Share the
wealth, when praised for a great accomplishment pass the credit to your
team, 6. Hold fast in your core values,
never compromise who you are, 7. Be the
first to say "I don't know", don't allow yourself to make up stories
to satisfy others, 8. Transparency is
your favorite tool, you know it brings everyone closer to the result. It can not be delegated nor reduced . It is upward and unitary.
A
personal accountability consultant defines some very unique attributes of those
who take personal responsibility. These employees: Eliminate blaming others for things that
happen., Eliminate being a victim and instead act with responsibility. Eliminate
procrastination in carrying out responsibilities
Ask
questions that begin with what or how, contain the
word I, and focus on action. For example, they ask “How can I help
you with that problem?” “What can I do to help get this done on
time?” “What can I do to adapt to the new organization?”.
A checklist to help you get
started – Find practical ways to hold yourself accountable, Evaluate
your promises and commitments,
Review the realistic consequences of your failures and mistakes—As a leader, consider in what ways that you’re
slipping as a leader . Make it clear to others the specifics of your expectations Share the
consequences A = A { degree of practicality, commitment to
promises, realistic consequences,
valuing all the subjects in the team, clarity and expressivity of expectations,
ability to share consequences }.
5.
Openness:
Holders of
public office should be as open as possible about all the decisions and actions
that they take. They should give reasons for their decisions and restrict
information only when the wider public interest clearly demands.
Openness is about
"valuing information," he says. "People with high openness show
high dopamine projections at the potential of acquiring information." In
other words, the higher you score on the "openness" trait, the better
it feels to learn new things. Kaufman, who made a splash with his book "Ungifted: Intelligence Redefined," has
found that openness can be further separated into four factors. Viz., Explicit Cognitive, Ability, Intellectual
Engagement, Affective Engagement, Aesthetic Engagement. Openness to experience is about the way
information activates you.
Openness to experience is a
"very active process," Kaufman says. "That's what genes do;
that's what dopamine does - they energize." Open people tend to be creative, liberal,
curious, aesthetically-minded and fantastical; they are more likely to be
artists or scientists.
OP = OP { creative, liberal, curious, aesthetic mind, }
6. Honesty: Holders of public office have a
duty to declare any private interests relating to their public duties and to
take steps to resolve any conflicts arising in a way that protects the public
interest. Honesty is when you speak
the truth and act truthfully.
What
is honesty? – Honesty is in what you say; Honesty is when you speak the truth
and act truthfully.
What is honesty? – Honesty is in what
you say; What is honesty? Honesty is in
how you act; What is being honest with yourself?.
Leadership:
Holders of public office should promote and support these principles by
leadership and example. The 10 key qualities that every good eader should
possess, and learn to emphasize. They
are Honesty, Ability to Delegate, Communication, Sense of Humor, Confidence,
Commitment, Positive Attitude,
Creativity, Intuition, Ability to Inspire.
7.
L
= L { Honesty , Ability to Delegate,
Communication, Sense of
humor, Confidence , Commitment, Positive Attitude, Creativity,
Intuition, Ability to Inspire }.
So Probity can be described a s a function depending
on the above parameters. Initially we may consider parameter a s an additive
function of the above parameters. Hence
P =
F { S, I, OB, A, OP, H, L } .
Also
the traits of each of the parameters can be known and we can construct a
dependency function. It may be
noted that the traits of each parameter
of Probity are such that: Thus
S I OB A OP H L
→①→②→③→④→⑤→⑥→⑦→
III. IMPROVING PROBITY STANDARDS / ENHANCING PROBITY LEVELS:
There are a number of generally
accepted probity principles which serve to maintain the integrity of the
process: They are Accountability, Transparency,
Confidentiality, Management of
Conflicts of Interest. In particular,
responsibility for the following key tasks should be identified and documented:
• Authorizing the documents which set the
framework for the competitive bid process, e.g. information memorandum,
expressions of interest, requests for tender
• Analyzing bids, preparing recommendations
and making decisions on the selection of shortlisted proponents and the
preferred proponent
• Communicating with bidding parties;
• Consultation with ministers and other parts of government who are
not directly involved in the management of the competitive bid process but have
an interest in its conduct and
outcomes
·
Resolving probity and process questions as they
arise.
Another
mechanism to facilitate accountability is for the government to keep
comprehensive records throughout the process of meetings with proponents.
Probity, Enhanced Service Delivery Key To Millennium Development
goals’ Attainment – Gbeneol: By Israel Goodway
IV.
CONCLUSION: An organization must develop a culture of being subjected to probity. In fact the leader must be more committed to
the principles of probity. The
organization and the individuals associated with the system automatically become
committed of-course they ought to be.
Again the question is, Is it possible to develop such organizations
where all individuals are sincere honest, accountable and their activities must
be transparent. There is a need for training in greater introspection. Make
probity templates. When it is possible to achieve higher goals through Yoga, it
is also possible to manage the issues with probity. The nurturing of probity is similar to
nurturing spiritual intelligence to improve the overall performance. Though certain authors have designed some mathematical
formulae for the constituents of Probity,
but more theoretical work yet to
be initiated. It is possible to device a probity quotient, similar to
intelligence quotient. There are of-course studies in estimating the intuitive
capability of the person. It is possible to carry out empirical studies to
estimate the PQ (probity quotient) for any individual and for any organization.
