Be Mains Ready

Approach

• Introduce by mentioning about the relationship between public functionaries and the citizens.
• Explain the concept of ‘Conflict of Interest’ and how it affects this relationship.
• Give measures to be adopted to avoid conflict of interest.
• Conclude on the need to maintain high standards of governance.

Introduction

The fundamental principle in a democracy is that all public functionaries are trustees of the people. However, this trust in the civil servants may get eroded by their unethical behavior during conflict of interest situations.

Body

Conflict of interest situation arises when there is an actual or apparent conflict between public duty and private interest of a public official. In such a situation, an official's private interests could improperly influence the performance of official duties. Conflict of interest reduces public trust and confidence in the integrity and impartiality of public functionaries.

Public servants face conflict of interest due to the nature of their work-

• Personal vs Professional
  
  • This is the most common type of conflict of interest arising due to the conflict between personal and professional life.
  • Say, if a public servant is in charge of giving out contracts for a certain project and one of the applicants is a relative or friend.
  • They also face conflict of interest due to demands of their dual roles while working as public officials and also being a private citizen while off duty. As a public official, who exercises official power by making decisions or taking action on behalf of the State or an authority, they have huge authority and resources at their disposal which they might be tempted to use as private citizen who seeks to pursue his/ her rights and interests. This may lead to corruption and nepotism if not resolved in the ethical way, thereby eroding public faith.
• Conflicting Responsibility
  
  • Sometimes public servants are given additional charge, which might sometimes create a conflict of interest with the original line of duty.
• Conflicting Organizations
  
  • Sometimes public servants are part of two separate organizations with apparently conflicting objectives and this might put them in certain conflict of interest.
  • Many public servants also volunteer for NGOs during their service. NGOs and government organizations sometimes come at odds with each other.

As a civil servant, one has to adhere to the standards of civil service values like impartiality, efficiency, integrity and must show exemplary behavior. Thus, civil servants need to properly handle such conflicting interests and situations. This can be done by following the principles mentioned below, if such a situation arises:

• Transparency
  
  • Declaring one’s conflict of interest to the concerned authorities is the best way. One should recuse himself from positions of authority to avoid any conflict of interest.
  • It helps civil servant to come clean and concerned authorities can decide further.
• Assure integrity
  
  • The concerned authority should be assured of integrity and willingness to serve no matter what the decision is made on the declaration.
• Maintain objectivity
  
  • If given the chance to continue working on that case, one should work with objectivity.

Other institutional measures to reform the governance system should be adopted. There is a need to reduce discretion and codify procedure:

• There is a need for legislation to make non-disclosure of a conflict of interest punishable.
• The recommendation of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Department of Personnel and Training should be implemented. It called for increasing the mandatory cooling off period to five years in post-retirement opportunities in the private sector after early retirement. This would ensure that no undue influence can be exerted by the retired bureaucrat.
• An open, public data platform enlisting all post-retirement appointments of civil servants will increase transparency.

Conclusion

Therefore, the moral obligation on public officials requires that the authority entrusted to them be exercised in the best interest of the people or in ‘public interest’. The trust on civil servants should be maintained for efficient and effective governance.