I have been agonising over how public servants, including civil servants, can be more accountable – always remembering that everything we do is for to the service of the people and has consequences.
Every day I am reminded of the leadership concept that goes back to biblical times: “To him whom much is given, much is required.”
This means the more responsibility and leadership you are afforded, the more is required from you in regard to accountability.
I am also reminded of Winston Churchill’s words: “The price of greatness is responsibility.”
I couldn’t agree more.
From the above concepts, there is no doubt that as civil servants, we need to recognise our responsibility and accountability in the following four main areas:
l Having a love and passion for what we do;
l Supporting the mission, vision and goals of the provincial government;
l Modeling our service to our people through great customer service; and
l Keeping our behaviour in check at all times, on and off duty.
I will never forget how my grandparents often likened political leadership and serving people to being a lot like a marriage. Some marriages disintegrate due to complacency and apathy.
The same is true in government. If we do not serve the people, honestly and with the love and passion we had when the romance first started, people will recognise this and embark on the kind of service delivery protests we see these days.
The Eastern Cape government has established a platform to instill accountability and consequence management around members of the public (voters) holding public representatives, civil servants and the private sector accountable to the rule of law, election manifestos and environmental issues.
The framework is supported by sections 92 and 133 of the country’s constitution which embeds accountability as a cornerstone of the democratic system.
To help us with accountability for policy and accountability for management, the King Report on Governance for South Africa and the King Code of Governance Principles, together referred to as King III, describe governance in three key aspects: leadership, sustainability and corporate citizenship.
According to King III, effective leadership results in the achievement of the highest levels of social, economic and environmental performance.
To respond to aspects of leadership and governance, the Eastern Cape government ascribes to national’s Batho Pele – “People first” – principle.
Here is what the Batho Pele handbook says about accountability and governance: “...an initiative to get public servants to be service orientated, to strive for excellence in service delivery and to commit to continuous service delivery improvement. It is a simple and transparent mechanism, which allows citizens to hold public servants accountable for the level of services they deliver.”
Another mechanism of accountability is the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA). This is well-known for its high governance requirements, and our provincial government is frequently measured against this standard by the Auditor-General and other bodies, such as the parliamentary standing committee on public accounts.
What can our provincial government gain from adhering to accountability?
Service delivery will improve. Government priorities will be achieved as targets and accountability for achieving those targets will be clear.
Accountability will help tackle poverty through improved economic development, improved policymaking and implementation – nationally, provincially and locally. There will also be improved audit outcomes such as unqualified audit reports.
Accountability affects every task, big or small, within an organisation and how smoothly and productively individuals work together.
Citizens of the Eastern Cape have a responsibility to hold us accountable for anything we do.
As provincial government, we are committed to set good examples – with no room for public servants who do not practise what they preach, where politicians and civil servants practise good work ethics and are accountable to each other and to the people.
Phumulo Masualle is premier of the Eastern Cape
Great value in accountability
Every day I am reminded of the leadership concept that goes back to biblical times: “To him whom much is given, much is required.”
This means the more responsibility and leadership you are afforded, the more is required from you in regard to accountability.
I am also reminded of Winston Churchill’s words: “The price of greatness is responsibility.”
I couldn’t agree more.
From the above concepts, there is no doubt that as civil servants, we need to recognise our responsibility and accountability in the following four main areas:
l Having a love and passion for what we do;
l Supporting the mission, vision and goals of the provincial government;
l Modeling our service to our people through great customer service; and
l Keeping our behaviour in check at all times, on and off duty.
I will never forget how my grandparents often likened political leadership and serving people to being a lot like a marriage. Some marriages disintegrate due to complacency and apathy.
The same is true in government. If we do not serve the people, honestly and with the love and passion we had when the romance first started, people will recognise this and embark on the kind of service delivery protests we see these days.
The Eastern Cape government has established a platform to instill accountability and consequence management around members of the public (voters) holding public representatives, civil servants and the private sector accountable to the rule of law, election manifestos and environmental issues.
The framework is supported by sections 92 and 133 of the country’s constitution which embeds accountability as a cornerstone of the democratic system.
To help us with accountability for policy and accountability for management, the King Report on Governance for South Africa and the King Code of Governance Principles, together referred to as King III, describe governance in three key aspects: leadership, sustainability and corporate citizenship.
According to King III, effective leadership results in the achievement of the highest levels of social, economic and environmental performance.
To respond to aspects of leadership and governance, the Eastern Cape government ascribes to national’s Batho Pele – “People first” – principle.
Here is what the Batho Pele handbook says about accountability and governance: “...an initiative to get public servants to be service orientated, to strive for excellence in service delivery and to commit to continuous service delivery improvement. It is a simple and transparent mechanism, which allows citizens to hold public servants accountable for the level of services they deliver.”
Another mechanism of accountability is the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA). This is well-known for its high governance requirements, and our provincial government is frequently measured against this standard by the Auditor-General and other bodies, such as the parliamentary standing committee on public accounts.
What can our provincial government gain from adhering to accountability?
Service delivery will improve. Government priorities will be achieved as targets and accountability for achieving those targets will be clear.
Accountability will help tackle poverty through improved economic development, improved policymaking and implementation – nationally, provincially and locally. There will also be improved audit outcomes such as unqualified audit reports.
Accountability affects every task, big or small, within an organisation and how smoothly and productively individuals work together.
Citizens of the Eastern Cape have a responsibility to hold us accountable for anything we do.
As provincial government, we are committed to set good examples – with no room for public servants who do not practise what they preach, where politicians and civil servants practise good work ethics and are accountable to each other and to the people.
Phumulo Masualle is premier of the Eastern Cape
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