Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
This lesson complies with the following course outcome:
representative democracy.
Synopsis
In this lesson you will learn the meaning of public administration, a dynamic field of study
within the Social Science. Public administration is a very important field of study and very
close to the daily life of each and every member of the society. This lesson will introduce
you the dichotomy of policy and administration. It is important for all staff of public service
and the society to understand that there should be a clear separation between the functional
duties of politics and administration. You will also learn the differences between
administration in the private sector and the public sector.
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However, public administration is not merely meeting with governmental procedures alone, it
is an important enterprise that helps any government to function effectively and to provide
favourable environment for quality of life to the entire population. This is not surprising,
because public administration covers a broad range of activities that can be differentiated
from the private sector entities. Denhardt and Grubbs (1999) advocate that public sector
management (public administration) is different from that of the private sector because of
“…grater ambiguity of purpose in the public sector as compared to the bottom-line profit
making in the private sector; pluralistic decision making in the a public sector organization
involving many people instead of a few in a private organization; and visibility of public sector
management, the feeling of operating in a goldfish bowl of public scrutiny”. What this simply
means is that, decisions made in a private company though involve several parties such as
the board of director and the management team, they are still straight forward as compared
those of the public sector. Government decision-making is elaborate because it involves
many people and interest. First, the people is involved because they elect the government-
of-the-day and given mandate for them to rule. Second, it involves all the three branches of
government namely, the legislature, the executive and the judiciary. Third, the different
ministries also make decision. Finally, there are numerous government departments and
agencies that also play important roles. Now, lets look at how public administration is
defined?
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Public administrators, or the employees of the public service engage in the above process
everyday. They are hired based on their expertise and orientated in the career service to be
neutral politically. They should possess detailed knowledge of management techniques and
practices. They also should have considerable knowledge of social conditions and the
needs of the people. It is extremely important for these professionals to be closer to the
community as to continuously update their knowledge and understand what are required by
the population from them. The public administrators also should be seen to be implementing
the policies of the government-of-the-day efficiently and effectively. Although government
changes over time as a result of elections, public administrators are there to stay. While
policies may change to reflect the agenda of the government-of-the-day, professional public
administrators should be able to adapt them in accordance with the public interest.
At this juncture you need to also understand that in a democratic country, the majority rules.
The public administration of the country acts as the government policy implementation
agent. Government policies to a certain extent require the population to abide by them.
Some scholars called this as mandatory and enforced coercively. Though the word
‘coercive’ usually carries a negative connotation – feeling of something that is forced upon
people against their will, it is important as a tool to protect the public’s interest. For example,
people can be arrested on suspicion of having committed a crime. In a democratic society,
public governance in theory depicts that people agree to participate in the collective activity
of the whole. Another example, if a person decides that the public sector should not fund
higher education and refuses to pay a portion of his/her income taxes equivalent to the
proportion of the public money be used for higher education, he/she can expect there will be
consequences such as financial penalties and/or imprisonment. Thus, as you can see, the
peoples are coerced into participating in the support of public institutions, complying with the
will of the majority, whether or not they agree and whether or not they personally benefit
from a particular government service or program. The basis for this is as long as it is good
for all the people. If the people do not agree with the government policies, they can join
together with others to change the way government is operated through public opinion,
policy advocacy and election. In sum, public sector regulations should be seen as mandatory
and coercive because there is no other way to operate the government. The government
would fail if citizens were given the luxury of choosing only preferred regulations or policies
to abide to. In contrast, customer of the private sector have the right to choose whether or
not to buy a product or service because there is a range of choices in a private economy and
people choose what they want. In the public sector there is only one government.
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The dichotomy doctrine is certainly compatible with the Weberian tradition. It has become
the hallmark of modern public administration in the Western world. Although the doctrine
was ‘prescribed’ for most developing countries especially those which, gained independence
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from western colonial masters, it was almost never implemented strictly. In Malaysia, during
the occupation of the British Empire, the only separation was between ‘them’ and ‘us’. ‘Us’
is referring to the colonial administration, which in general had no issues that require them
drawing a line between formulation and implementation of policy. ‘Them’ is actually the
people, their subject of colonialism. Besides indigenous politics, matters that were
imperative to the locals such as the administration of cultural and religious ‘ceremonials’
were left to administration of the locals (including the rulers and their immediate ministers).
On the other hand, policies related to economy, security and politics were reserved for
colonial administration that not only formulated but also implemented them. Thus, we can
say that the spirit of the dichotomy doctrine was never introduced during the British
occupation until we gained independence.
The influential sociologist Max Weber proposed a theory of authority that included three
types. He pioneered a path towards understanding how authority is legitimated as a belief
system. His essay “The three types of legitimate rule”, translated in English and published
posthumously in 1958, is the clearest explanation of his theory. His ideas and suggestions
find ways into the Western administrative culture especially in the public sector. This
administrative culture is widely known today as merely the Weberian tradition.
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On one hand, the politicians may not have all the important facts and information required to
perform their duties. They certainly need the help of key bureaucrats who usually, based on
their appointments and duties have the facts and information about public needs.
Bureaucrats are continuously sought after by policy makers to provide them with intellectual,
up-to-date and factual information. Without them, policy makers could be ‘reduced’ to
merely popular politicians. On the other hand, politicians who are appointed as ministers
and the like have the tendency to resume towards implementation of policies within their
portfolio. By so doing, the ministers certainly have violated the dichotomy doctrine. When
bureaucrats provide suggestions for the most probable policy formation, he/she has also
violated the doctrine. Can you explain why?
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1. Ultimate goal. To the private sector, at the end of the day, how much profit is made
would be the most important question. Companies are created to maximize profit in
order to fulfil the interest of the stakeholders, which include individual shareholders.
The company can do so many things, but the end result would normally be in terms
of ‘ringgit’, or ‘dollars’ or ‘rupiah’. On the contrary, public administration has a higher
order goal. Most of the time it is in terms of ‘public interest’. Public interest that
should include yours and mine is for most of the time beyond what money can buy
or beyond monetary measures. For example, to a handicapped person, getting a
wheeled chair from the Welfare Department is what he/she would ever wanted. That
person may not be able get it himself/herself because of poverty. The department
would definitely have to invest some money to get the person what he/she need.
However, the investment is not targeted for monetary profit. In return, the
department may just be able to make someone or a group of citizen happy and
satisfied. That is what public interest means, satisfied citizen.
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4. Tenure of office. Officers and staff of the public service enjoy a more permanent
carrier as compared to the private sector counterpart. Although there are numerous
and extended regulations to be followed, public service personnel cannot be
terminated from their service easily. If an officer was found to be involved in any
deviant behaviour, he/she will be given ample spaces to defend his/herself through
various mechanisms such as the disciplinary board. If found guilty, there would be a
row of ‘punishments’ besides the ultimate firing. In contrast, private sector personnel
are more susceptible to be fired though within the realm of the law.
5. Pension scheme. Public sector employees enjoy the benefits of favourable pension
scheme upon retirement. Although private sector employees too may enjoy
comparable benefits, being government employees have a better the privilege
because the pension scheme is not only protected by the Pension Act but also by
the government fund.
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Public administration is seen to be very near to the public and understands them well. Their
inputs to policy makers are crucial to ensure sound and appropriate policies are enacted and
implemented. They shoulder the responsibilities of fulfilling public’s interest in all the things
they do.
Public administration continues to find ways and avenues to help the nation gain the extra
edge in globalisation. It acts as the guardian to the nation’s important resources from being
siphoned out by selfish investors and players.
Public administration secures the state by providing state-of-the-art defence system against
domestic and foreign perpetrators with unfavourable objectives. The police and the armed
forces are only two examples of this effort. Other departments and agencies too are playing
their roles in defending the interest of the state.
Public administration is also doing its parts in creating new market for the nation’s products
overseas. By engaging itself to business communities abroad, public organizations such as
MIDA (Malaysia Industrial Development Agency) has successfully identified new markets for
Malaysia product besides engaging foreign businesses with Malaysian counterparts in joint-
venture projects for many years.
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Public administration also plays an important role in citizens’ medical needs. Malaysian
public hospitals are not only staffed by able physicians but also equipped with state-of-the-
art medical equipments. These hospitals have significantly improved the well-being of the
Malaysian people.
Lesson 1 Assignment
Ask your Seminar Facilitator for a list of assignments for this lesson.
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