PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION  “Administration” refers to the aggregate of those persons in whose hands the

- People form organizations to accomplish goals which they cannot achieve individually and one reins of the government are place for the time being while “administrative
such organization is the government. services” refers to the aggregate of government agencies that are necessary to
- The people‟s involvement with government becomes inescapable since its establishment. It carry on government routine work. These agencies perform the ordinary,
becomes an essential part of both their individual and group efforts. Inevitably, it has assumed scientific, and technical aspects of the machinery of the government that are
not only coordination but also the control function of their society. necessary to carry on its day-to-day functions.
- With such developments, public administration has become the essential tool of government in - Other social scientists presented public administration definition in the form of a brief
the performance of achieving its functions. summary.
- Public administration is never static. It is a dynamic organ of government which keeps in o Is a cooperative group efforts in a public setting
responding to the requirements of the time. o Covers all three branches – executive, legislative, and judicial – and their
- Government achieves continuity by conforming to the customs, traditions, and temperament of interrelationships
the people. As such, it serves not only as the “government‟s central instrument for dealing with o Has an important role in the formulation of public policy and is thus a part of the
general social problems,” but also as an effective measure for strengthening society itself. political process.
- Politics and public administration are interrelated and interwoven; in fact, knotted to each o Is different in significant ways from private administration
other. o Public administration is a dynamic art which is gradually being developed as a science
- Public administration is a productive partner of politics in bringing the affairs of government to
the people. It is also an effective instrument of the government‟s serving the citizens as well as What is management?
the vehicle for spurring their participation in the administration of the government. - One way of looking at management is through people who compose the organization. In this
manner, it may be considered as the people responsible for the actions in the organization.
What is public administration? - Ralph Currier Davis and Alan C. Filley
Public administration is commonly defined as “government in action.” o Management is the function of executive leadership.
- Raul P. de Guzman - Peter F. Drucker
o Wherever there is government there is public administration. It refers to cooperative o Management, which is the organ of society specifically charged with making resources
human action to achieve the purposes of government. productive, that is, with the responsibility for organized economic advance.
Public administration calls for action.
- Leonard D. White Is Public Administration an Art or a Science?
o Public administration is concerned with action in particular concrete situations, but in - Perfecto S. Sison
accordance with long range objectives. “Government in action”. o Art is proficiency in the practical application of knowledge acquired through study,
- Robert Presthus experience, or observation.
o Public administration is concerned with the institutional framework of government, its o It is also the use of talent for creative work.
socio-economic and political milieu, and the behaviour of the individuals who man the o Science is the systematic accumulation of facts, their analysis and interpretation, and
bureaucratic machine. their use to arrive at a satisfactory conclusion.
o Public administration shows that it could also concern with the formulation of public - Leonard D. White
policies and the implementation of government programs. o The art of administration is the direction, coordination, and control of many persons to
o He point out that public administration is “that aspect of administration occurring achieve some purpose or objective.
under the formal aegis of government at every level.” If it is only an aspect of o It is a dynamic art taking the human and physical resources available in a system of
administration, then what is administration? administration and bending them to the achievement of some required goals.
- Barry M. Richman and Melvyn Copen view on “Administration” - Avery Leiserson and Fritz Morstein Marx
o They define administration as follows: o A science of administration would be a body of formal statements describing invariant
 Administration is basically an organizational process concerned with the relationships between measurable objects, units, or elements.
implementation of objectives and plans and internal operating efficiency. - Herbert A. Simon, Donald W. Smithburg, Victor A. Thompson (1940)
 It often connotes bureaucratic structure and behaviour, relatively routine o They considered public administration as a science of human interaction that is
decision-making and maintenance of the internal status quo. susceptible to objective investigation and analysis without reference to value
o Moreover, administration is not limited to large organizations. As it is, Leonard D. judgement.
White considers administration applicable to all kinds of group effort. - Robert Presthus
o Brook Adams o He views public administration as the art and science of designing and carrying out
 He attaches administration to coordination. public policy.
 Administration is the capacity of coordinating many and often conflicting,
social energies in a single organism, so adroitly that they shall operate as a Comparison matrix of Public Administration and Private or Business Administration
unity. Public Administration Private Administration
 Public administration in carrying out public policies brings the different Broad field of administration Limited field of administration
administrative structures of government into a single organ of administration. Official actions are based on public trust carrying Not necessarily based on public trust; limited legal
o Primo L. Tongko legal accountability accountability
 It is necessary that government be distinguished from administration and Relatively routine decision-making procedure Unlimited in decision-making process
administrative services. Maintenance of internal status quo Dynamic entrepreneurship
 The term “government” embraces the totality of all institutions through which Actuation subject to public criticism Not normally subject to public criticism
the states carries out its will. Government corporations restricted by No such restrictions
requirements of fiscal accountability foreign to  Maintenance of order
corporate device  Attainment of justice
 Protection of a system of property rights
Official Actions of Public Administrators  Formation of administrative and foreign policies
- The official actions of public administrators are based on public trust carrying legal  Functions for which the state is well adapted:
accountability. Section 1 of Article XI of the 1987 Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines  Conservation of natural resources
provides that:  Control of monopoly
o Public office is a public trust. Public officers and employees must at all times be  The maintenance of public services such as parks, playgrounds,
accountable to the people, serve them with utmost responsibility, integrity, loyalty, and schools and museums
efficiency; act with patriotism and justice, and lead modest lives.  Preservation of health
- Any government office is a trust for it is created for the sole purpose of affecting the ends for  Functions for which the state is ill adapted:
which it has been establish, which the common good is and not for the profit, honor, or private  This will vary with the conditions, but in general they are functions
interest of any one man, family, or class of men. which do not serve the need of the entire community such as
- Former Senate President Gil J. Puyat wrote on August 30, 1979 the following message in his religion and literary and artistic production and evaluation.
notes:  Functions which the state is incapable of performing:
o To be given the opportunity to serve the people is indeed a priceless gift that a country  Control of people‟s opinion
can give a citizen. For a citizen who is given this opportunity and who would serve less
 Regulation of morality
than his very best in dedication and performance, indeed has committed or is
o Clearly, public administration has become inextricably interwoven into every aspect of
committing an act of apostasy.
human life.
The Role of Public Administration in Modern Society
Public Administration’s Role in Designing Policy
- Good government = Good public administration
- Policy – making is “the prerogative of the political or elected actors in the government.”
- A government survives when it provides good public administration. Public administration is
- The role of public administration in designing the country‟s policies depends primarily on the
good when the people find in government the full expression of popular will.
nature of the objectives being pursued and the social conditions prevailing at the moment.
- Service to the people is the basic foundation of government, of which public administration is an
essential tool.
Bureaucracy
o Full expression of popular will
- Bureaucracy is “a type of organization designed to accomplish large-scale administration tasks
o Service to the people
by systematically coordinating the work of many individuals.
o People understands the ways of the government
- It is the best form of organization (German sociologist Max Weber)
o Government machinery used to implement programs for the best interest of the people
- The term “bureaucracy” has become an epithet which refers to inefficiency and red tape in the
o Disseminating information about the government
government; but this was not the original meaning, and it is not the way the term will be used.
(Peter M. Blau-American Bureaucracy)
The New Role of Public Administration
- Bureaucracy is “a specific form of social organization for administrative purposes.”
- The ends of public administration are the ultimate objectives of the State itself. Public
o Bureaucracy is reflected in certain specific forms of organizational behaviour:
administration expands with the development of public interests. As the administrative system
hierarchy, subdivision, specialization, fixed ways of doing things, and
grows and becomes more complex, the role of public administration expands. The public service
professionalization. (Marshall E. Dimock)
is one of the principal pivots where people try to attain the good life.
- Bureaucracy is “that types of hierarchical organization which is designed rationally to
o Traditional functions
coordinate the work of many individuals in pursuit of large-scale administrative tasks.”
o Expansion of machinery and main thrust
o In bureaucratically organized systems, authentic authority, which binds the various
o Serving as a change agent in nation building
levels together, originates at the top and passes through the organizations as
o Carrying out State Policy: Sec. 19, Article XII of the 1987 Philippine Constitution
managers delegate it downward.
 Carrying out such policy of the State is the responsibility of public
administration. Thus empowered by the laws of the land, public
The Meaning and the Nature of Bureaucracy
administration regulates the acquisition, ownership, use, enjoyment and
- Etymology:
disposition of private property, and to diffuse equitably both the ownership
o French in origin, and combines the French word “bureau” (desk or office) with the
and the profits of property. So private and individual activities of the people
Greek word “kratos” (rule or political power)
are controlled to make them converge harmoniously in the development of a
- Meaning according to Merriam Webster:
national life which may be considered for the common good of the people.
o body of non-elective government officials
o an administrative policy-making group
Executive Leadership’s Role of Public Administration
o government characterized by specialization of functions, adherence to fixed rules, and
- Role in the policy formulation
a hierarchy of authority
- Implementation of policy
o a system of administration marked by officialism, red tape, and proliferation
- Give effect to the policy in defining means and ends of government action
- Bureaucracy connotes narrowness, rigidity and red tape, a common perception among people in
- New need = additional power = more functions
general:
- Continuity in policy making essential for effective public administration
o “A system of administration marked by constant driving for increased functions and
o Multi-function of government (classification)
power by lack of initiative and flexibility by indifference to human needs or public
 Functions peculiar to the state:
 opinion and by a tendency to defer decisions to superiors or to impede action with red
tape”
- Definition:
o Administration of government through departments and subdivisions managed by set
of officials following inflexible routine.
- According to Social Scientists:
o A formal structure, which organizes and coordinates the various functions of large
number of individuals engaged in a common activity.
- The bureaucracy is rationally organized structure designed for problem solving.
Why do we need Bureaucratic Organization?
- to promote efficiency for specialization and division of labor
- enable for the worker to perform their tasks efficiently
- to master the nature of their job and make it as part of their individuality
- good coordination within the low and high level of administrative talent
Major Functions of Bureaucracy
- Carry out the decisions made by the political leaders and provides control and discipline in
meeting the organizations goals by rigid structural planning.
- Policy making process because of their expertise and access to information.
- The bureaucrats are the administrators involved in both policy and operational activities.
- They are charged with the maintenance of order the same as the army, police and civilian
administrators.
o Bureaucracy as the pyramid of authority it is organized to promote clear lines of
authority
o Order is maintained in each level and they must live with rules to ensure proper order.
- Administration and control of fiscal matter such as taxes and bonds (electric power,
transportation, monopolies and special banks).
- Regulatory control over private enterprises and corporations.
- They insure the continuity of the governmental process because of their security of tenure.
o TENURE / Freedom from dismissal is an important feature of the government
bureaucracy.
- The higher officials on the civil service are indispensable as links between successive
governments.
Common Patterns in Formal Organizations
- Fixed and official jurisdictional areas.
o All governments follow the Weberian principle of “fixed and official jurisdictional
areas”. Jurisdictional varies but most of the government have ministries of foreign
affairs, defence, justice etc.
- Graded Hierarchy (subdivided into more specialized unit)
- Monocratic Administration (single official)
- Semi-detached government entity
- o
Bureaucracy principal characteristics as per the following features
- Large and complex organization as measured by the number of people it employed.
- Majority of those employed were performing semi-skilled and unskilled works.
- Relatively simple mass production technology is applied.
- Relatively simple product is produced
Bureaucracy principal characteristics
- Staff members are personally free of serving only the impersonal duties.
- There is a clear hierarchy of offices.
- The functions of the offices are clearly specified.
- Officials are appointed on the basis of a contract.
- They are selected through the basis of professional qualification substantiated by a diploma and
gained through examination.
- They have a money salary and usually a pension right. The salary is graded according to
position in the hierarchy.
- Officials can always leave the post and under certain circumstances it also may be terminated.
Officials post is his sole major occupation.
- There is a career structure and promotion is possible either by seniority or merit according to
judgment of superiors.
- The official may appropriate neither the post nor the resources that go with it.
- The official is subject to a unified control and disciplinary system.
The CIVIL SERVICE
- It means government jobs are filled by competitive examinations but for some jobs the test score
will consist partly of credits for training and experiences.
- Civil service tradition and practices are accepted by civil servants. In some developed nations it
is considered an honor to work for the government.
A Political System Defines Its Bureaucracy
- A system of administration based upon organization into bureaus, division of labor, hierarchy of
authority; designed to dispose of a large body of work in a routine manner.
Features of Philippine Bureaucracy
- Technical and administrative expertise. They are promoted according to merit.
- Recruitment of the government is through CSE, eligibility for graduates and under graduates
through their specialized degree and board examinations.
- Administration rule through limitation of authority.
- Jurisdiction in the area of responsibility.
- Bureaucratic authority is based on conformity to rules, correct procedures and rationally legal
contrast to traditional or charismatic authority.
- Security of tenure in the government.
- Classification of employees in the government:
o Casual – rank and file positions of a 6months, and no CS eligibility
o Temporary – technical expertise in temporary basis but their status can be changed
through civil service eligibility and vacating of certain position though promotion,
resignation, transfer, retirement or death.
o Contractual – highly technical or specialized knowledge (1-3 years or more) it depends
on the necessity of position and the exigency of the job.
Characteristics of Philippines Bureaucracy
- Vulnerability to nepotism
o Under Philippine bureaucracy substructure of small kinship groups, members of the
family groups by consanguinity, by affinity, and by ritual kinship (or compadrazgo/
compadre) give top priority to family loyalty. Within such groupings, all of them feel
that they are under obligation to help each other in a variety of ways.
- Perpetuation of the spoils system
Classify service, unclassified and temporary positions which have become convenient
instruments for the practice of nepotism, of patronage, and of influence peddling.
- Apathetic public reaction of bureaucratic misconduct
o The people looked upon the phenomenon as a concomitant result of the increasing
complexity of the government, a method of political promises to the unemployed and
underemployed segments of the population
- Availability of external peaceful means of correcting bureaucratic weakness
o Devices, such as constitutional right and privileges-freedom of speech, freedom of the
press, freedom of assembly, civic action-have been used for rectifying the defects and
misdeeds of bureaucracy.
- Survival of historical experience
o The Philippine political bureaucracy was administered according to a civil law system
which the Spanish bureaucracy as the scapegoat for all the weaknesses of the
 Philippines political bureaucracy. There are indications, however that the weaknesses
are not to be totally and directly attributed to the Spanish government bureaucracy.
- Non-special typing of bureaucrats
o Filipino bureaucrats do not comprise to a clear-cut social class. Other occupational
groups do not look upon civil service “as a special calling reserved to a special class or
group of persons” with a specific habits, skills, motives, interests, prerogatives, values,
and symbols to be consciously pursued, promoted and protected, respected or
assailed. Thus, Filipino bureaucratic organization consists of persons with varied
family backgrounds, aspirations, educational training, and work experiences.
- Lack of independence from politics
o Because of the absences of “class consciousness” and of a feeling of unity on the part
of the Filipino bureaucrats and the stigma of post-World War II ill-repute, the
Philippine bureaucracy‟s “merit system” was easily subject to attack and tampering by
politicians. They worked through the legislative and executive branches of the national
government.
- Essential instrument of social change
o In spite of its weaknesses, the Philippine bureaucracy‟s function in nation-building will
be as big, as complicated, and as demanding as the function of the whole society itself.
Primarily, it will have to be a tool for innovations.
Philippine Bureaucratic Behaviour
- The Philippine bureaucratic behaviour is influenced by its socio-economic structure, as well by
the tradition and cultures of the Filipinos.
o The behaviour of human being is largely influenced by the structure and function of
the social organization which they live.
- On the other hand, the behaviour of people largely influences the behaviour of the
organizations.
- The traditional values that tend to predominate the Philippine setting are those that center on
the family. The family system is the extended bilateral type which is bound by strong kinship
ties.
o Compadrazco system – one which ties people through a religious ceremony
o Elite – a high respect is accorded to social status rather than merit
o Pity (awa) – the sense of pity tends to distort efficiency ratings of subordinates
o Self-esteem (amor-propio) – expends much energy on interpersonal maneuverings
directed at maintaining one‟s status
 Equally limiting values are the sense of gratitude with unending reciprocity
(utang na loob), sense of camaraderie (pakikisama), paternalism, padrino
system and authoritarianism which pressure the bureaucrat to conform to
and meet parochial, dyadic, and kinship obligations over a consciousness of
merit and efficiency.
Types of Behaviour of Philippine Bureaucracy
- Conformity to policies
o Bureaucracy stresses unquestioning compliance to organizational policies, rules, and
regulations. Thus, there is a tendency for the bureaucrats to adhere conformity within
the bureaucratic framework.
o The Filipino is authoritarian. When power is given to him, he makes known to everyone
that he is the boss.
o The Filipino traits such as shame (hiya), a debt of gratitude (utang na loob) and desire
for smooth interpersonal relations (SIR) are closely related to each other in
accentuating authoritarianism in the Filipinos.
- Preference toward continuity and routinization
o Bureaucracy puts much emphasis on specialization.
o Moreover, a Filipino is imitative (gaya-gaya) and it causes Filipinos to emphasize on
façade such as “putting the best foot forward,” (palabas/ pakitang tao).
- Loss of self-direction or self-assertion
o The Filipino bureaucrats tend to submerge themselves into a collective mode of
decision making and responsibility that defines bureaucratic structure. Because of this
situation, they have the patience (tiyaga) in accepting and bearing consequences of
difficulties in their lives. Their patience may or may not involve hard manual work.
- Politically supportive
o The bureaucratic system in the Philippine tends to support the political party in power.
 Other characteristics of Filipino bureaucrats that affects the Philippine
bureaucratic behaviour:
 Bahala na
 Saka na
 Awa
 Amor propio
 Greed, laziness, ignorance
o Vices that have weakened the bureaucratic system
Problems in Philippine Bureaucracy
- Red Tape – unreasonable delay in government transactions as cause by either one or a
consideration of the following:
o Weak policy making program implementation
o Technocism or over conformity of officials that pursue ritualistic adherence to
established procedural or legal rules
o Over-organization which involves shuffling of papers in too many units of processing,
copious paper work and documentation
o Misapplication of rules, policy or procedures
o Deliberate attempts by bureaucrats to impose requirements for as to have an
opportunity of graft and corruption
- Nepotism – the practice of hiring relatives and appointing them to a certain positions in the
government.
- Political spoils or Patronage system – system using public offices or positions to record one`s
contribution to total public efforts (e.g no bid contract)
- Graft and corruption – a person is considered corrupt if he accepts money in the performance of
his duty
o Graft – illegal gaining of funds
o Corruption – improper use of funds
 Types of corruption frequently practiced in the Philippines namely:
 Tax evasion
 Ghost projects and payrolls
 Evasion of public bidding in awarding of contracts
 Passing of contracts
 Nepotism and favouritism
 Extortion
 Protection money and bribery.
o GRAFT – is the acquisition of gain or advantage through abuse or misuse of one„s
position or influence, whether in politics, business or any other undertaking. It is an
act performed by a civil servant or a group of civil servants, acting alone by himself or
by themselves, without involving any person outside the bureaucracy or jeopardizing
the performance of duties by another bureaucrat. – It refers to the acquisition of gain
in dishonest or questionable manner.
o CORRUPTION – has been defined as the misuse or abuse of public office for private
gain both in government and the private sector. It comes in several illicit forms,
including bribery, extortion, fraud, nepotism, graft, and speed money, pilferage, and
theft, and embezzlement, falsification of records, kickbacks, influence peddling and
campaign contributions.