“Accountability and control are twin pillars of democratic administration, yet excessive control may undermine administrative efficiency.” Discuss.

In an administration people need to make sure that the government is accountable for what it does. This means the government has to follow the rules and do what the people want. If the government does not follow the rules it is not doing its job.

The people in charge have to control the government to make sure it does what it is supposed to do.. If they control it too much it can make it hard for the government to do its job well and come up with new ideas. The government needs to be able to try things and make decisions on its own or it will not be able to help the people as much as it could. Accountability and control are important for democratic administration to work properly.

Accountability and Control Mechanisms

Control is something that people’re in charge of and it is done through rules and hierarchy and procedures and audits and oversight bodies. This helps make sure that the people in charge of the administration are answerable to the authority and the law and the citizens. The old way of doing administration relied a lot on these things to make sure that everything was neutral and fair. Control and administration are very important to make sure that everything runs smoothly.

Problems of Excessive Control

• When people are controlled much it causes a lot of problems. There is a lot of paperwork and things get delayed. People become very careful. Do not want to take risks. They also do not want to take responsibility for their actions.
• Officials are scared to make decisions because they think they will be questioned on. This makes the system very slow and unresponsive. The officials and the system become very inefficient. The system of over-control affects the officials and the overall efficiency of the system of tapism and diffusion of responsibility.

Evolving Administrative Thought

• The Finer–Friedrich debate is really about the Finer–Friedrich debate. It shows us that there is a big problem between people who want to be in charge from the outside and people who want to do the right thing because they feel it is right inside.
• Some new ways of doing things like New Public Management say that people should be free to make their choices and that they should be judged on how well they do their jobs.
• The New Public Service is different; it says that we should think about what’s good for everyone and that we should work together to make that happen. The Finer–Friedrich debate is important because it is still, about the Finer–Friedrich debate.
• Democratic administration requires smart control, combining external oversight with internal responsibility. Balanced accountability enhances both democratic legitimacy and administrative effectiveness.

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