Political Administration: A Philosophical Reading

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The book Peace and Nation Building: Challenges and Perspectives is a significant milestone for CCPRA in its commitment to justice and peace. As the world celebrate the 25th year of the International Day of Peace, this collection of articles addresses the theme of cultivating a culture of peace, especially in this part of the world where Nation Building initiatives faces challenges like corruption, conflict, injustice, intolerance, subjugation, and alienation.

Stephen Kachappilly is a Catholic priest and a member of Prem Jyoti Capuchin Custody, New Delhi. He optioned Masters in Political Science from Kerala University. Licentiate and Ph.D in Political Philosophy and Ethics from Pontifical Athenaeum, Jnana-Deepa Institute of Philosophy and Theology, Pune, Maharashtra, India.

He picked up martial arts in the Wado Ryu Karate-Do (affiliated to the Wado-Ryu Federation of India) from JD campus. Since 2014, he has been a visiting lecturer at Marygiri Institutes of Philosophy, Trivandrum, and Benedictine Philosophate, Makkiyad. He deals with Political Philosophy and Ethics. He has authored two books, a number of articles, blogs and many online scholarly publications. From 2022 he serves in the Catholic Church of Our Lady of Rosary Dep Qatar, in the Apostolic Vicariate Of Northern Arabia (AVONA).

Youtube: Journey to Discover, Stephen Kachappilly

The administrators and politicians are integral part of the administrative machinery in a political system. Responsibility and accountability play a crucial role in a political system that is founded on ethical values. The integrity of leaders is a prominent factor so that people can trust them irrespective of their political allegiance. So, the following questions are asked:

Can a political servant be an ethical person day-in-day-out over the course of his/her career? Where do we stand on the global span of the ethical/moral values, virtues, and visions of democracy? Is separation of politics from administration really necessary? Can we expect ethics in politics at all times? These are the four relevant questions that Dr. Stephen Kachappilly explores in this book. Through a deep examination of these issues with historical antecedents, the author tries to provide a solid base for addressing the present-day crisis. This study shows how transparency in communication along with the basic values such as freedom, equality, justice and responsibility can positively contribute to the success of a democratic system. Aside from these basic values, trust, openness and honesty can also be implanted in a democratic system.

Ethics play a crucial role in a democracy, serving numerous functions. Ethics provide a moral framework for decision-making. ensuring that choices are guided by principles and values like justice, fairness and respect for human rights. Ethics promote accountability among leaders and citizens, thereby encouraging transparency and responsibility in governance. Ethics foster informed citizenship, enabling individuals to make informed decisions and participate meaningfully in the democratic process. Civic responsibility is encouraged by ethics which can result in promoting active participation in community life and the quest for common good.

By integrating the democratic vision of Woodrow Wilson in his book, the author shows that democracy is a moral imperative promoting justice, equality and human rights. Wilson's politics-administration model is presented as one of the most predominant systems for democratic accountability in India. A democratic government has an obligation to treat everyone equally and to provide the greatest good to most of its citizens. However, Dr. Kachappilly observes that this caring aspect is an undiscovered fact in Indian democracy for decades. When elected office holders and appointed public administrators work together in collaboration, a democratic system could flourish and yield positive results. I appreciate Dr. Kachappilly on the occasion of the release of this book and wish him all the success in his academic journey.

As an overview to the topics of public administration, ethics, and democracy, the chapters in this segment are brought together to demonstrate not only how wide in scope the topics can be extended, but also the depths to which they can be explored. The themes presented in each of these chapters regardless of directions from which they are approached, prove to be timeless in their relevance to twenty-first century government administrative systems. In this sense, they serve as opening way to the most persistent and pervasive at times, the most dynamic and dramatic aspects of ethics in public administration precisely in democracy. Linkages between ethics and democracy are, to a significant extent, forged by the calibre and character of how the public service is advanced in the name of democracy. These bonds are emphasized most distinctly by the philosopher-historian, Barry Karl, in his article, 'Public Administration and American History.' The topic of the thesis, ""Relevance of Ethics in Political Administration: An Administrative View of Democracy based on Woodrow Wilson's Politics-Administration Dichotomy', signifies a crucial but yet to manifest character of ethics in the democratic countries including India my mother country. It invites all administrators to be more ethical in their approach. The word administrator in the thesis stands for politicians, ministers, governments and bureaucrats. Critical and comparative methods are used to explore all ideas regarding the topic.

Herewith, I make an attempt to find answers for the following relevant questions: Can a political servant be an ethical day-in-day-out over the course of his/her career? Where do we stand on the global span of the ethical/moral values, virtues, and visions of democracy? Is separation of politics from administration really necessary? Can we expect ethics in politics at all times? An in-depth examination of the historical antecedents that underpin our administrative superstructures can provide a solid base for addressing such contemporary questions. The dissertation strongly suggests for an obviously transparent expression of ethical/moral charity in democracy to be useful for success. Aside from the basic values of freedom, equality, justice, and responsibility, can trust, openness, and honesty also be implanted in a jurisdiction.

The first chapter, 'Inevitability of Ethics in Democracy', deals with the role of ethics in democracy. Unquestionably ethics plays a vital role every day at all the spheres including society, church, family, workplaces etc. Democracy is a form of government mostly accepted in the world. It is a way of life in which the members of society live, participate and cooperate each other. The merit of the democratic government is that it expresses at a collective level the ideal of the people's self-government. In a democrat form of government ethics takes the role of a commander to manifest its value and importance. Being a distinguishing factor, the good application of ethics decides the future of citizens and government in a democratic nation. Democracy is an ideal-seeking system that is committed to the common good, the good life, or that state of being where that which is good. This is the ultimate aspiration of democracy. Nonetheless, time and again it has been stated that, short of unremitting anarchy, democracy is the messiest form of government. That is to say, as Richard Stillman so artfully portrays in his article, ""The Peculiar 'Stateless' Origins of American Public Administration...."" there is nothing tidy, neat, orderly, or confidently predictable about the system of government we so ardently embrace.

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