ADMININSTRATIVE ACCOUNTABILITY

Definition: “The sum total of the constitutional, statutory, administrative and judicial rules and
precedents and the established practices by means of which public officials may be held
accountable for their official action.” (L.D White)
“It is a mechanism by which administrative officers and government agencies may be held
accountable for their acts to those, who bear political responsibility – the chief executive and
legislature.” (V.O Key Jr.)
Purpose of Accountability:
To control the misuse of power by bureaucracy
To make sure that bureaucracy exercises its powers in accordance with laws and regulations.
Objectives of Accountability:
Safeguard the individual’s rights.
Not to hamper the normal activities of the administration.

(TYPES OF ADMINISTRATIVE ACCOUNTABILITY)

Internal Control:

 Fitted into the administrative machinery and operates within the organization.
 Exercised by the supervisor over sub-ordinates with the administrative hierarchy.
External Control:

 Fitted outside the administrative machinery and works within constitutional framework.
 Exercised by the external bodies such as legislature and judiciary.

A) INTERNAL CONTROL: exercised through the following mechanism.

1) Administrative Process:
 PM checks the Cabinet Ministers.
 Ministers then check their respected departments.
 Civil administrators are controlled by Political administrators.
2) Hierarchical Order:
 Each department is arranged on scalar system.
 Executives are organized in hierarchical order.
 Executives control sub-ordinates through grading system.
3) Annual Confidential Reports:
 The superior officers prepare annual confidential reports (ACRs) of their
subordinates every year.
4) Budgetary Control:
  Allocating resources among various branches of administration but also a means
of keeping the administration.
 The Ministry of Finance prepares budget, gets it approved by parliament and
supervises the operations of the budgetary sanctions and appropriations.
5) Professional Ethics:
 Every profession develops a code of conduct for its members. A civil servant
should be non-corruptible, loyal, humble, non-partisan, honest, and efficient and
man of integrity.
6) Efficiency Survey:
 Inspection plays a vital role in the control of public business.
 Top executives go on inspection to ensure to maintain standard of efficiency.
7) Administrative Leadership:
 Leadership motivates and inspires the employees for efficiency.
 Moral and motivation depends upon the leadership.

B) EXTERNAL CONTROL: exercised by legislature, executive, judiciary and public.

1) Legislative Control:
 Enacts the laws
 Authorizes the administrators to engage in quasi-legislative and quasi-judicial
activities.
 Appropriates funds for all administrative programs.
 Determines the general outlines of administrative organization and procedure.
 Tools for Legislative Control: Questions, resolutions and motions (vote of no
confidence), debates and discussions, legislating laws, audit and report and
committees of Legislature.
2) Executive Control:
 It means the control exercised by the Chief Executive over administration.
 In Presidential form of govt, President exercises this control i.e USA. In this govt,
the president is accountable to the electorates, who in turn controls the whole
administration through agents like ministers, secretaries.
 In Parliamentary form of govt, Prime Minister exercises this control and the
cabinet is responsible for the whole administration of parliament.
 Methods of Executive Control: Policy making, budgetary system, recruitment
system, staff agencies, executive orders.

3) Judicial Control:
 The power of courts to keep the decisions and acts of administrative officials
within the bounds of law.
 Protects the rights and liberty of citizens.
 Rule of law system: everyone equal to law
 Habeas corpus: a writ to the person detaining another.
 Mandamus: A command issued by court to corporations, offices, inferior courts.
 Prohibition: A superior court directs lower court for not usurping a jurisdiction.
 Certiorari: To be certified or to be made certain.
  Quo warranto: A warrant or authority.
4) Public Control: In democratic set up, the people set the whole mechanism of the
government. They elect the head of the state and members of the legislature directly or
indirectly. The formal methods of public control over administration are as following:
 Election
 Re-call: The electors can re-call the government, which becomes inefficient,
corrupt and unable to control the civil administration.
 Pressure Groups: used for a section of organized people to pursue some special
interests .i.e industrialists, traders etc.
 Advisory Committee:

(HISTORY OF ADMINSTRATIVE FRAMEWORK IN PAKISTAN)

1) 1950 to 1980
 Prevention of Corruption Act 1947
 Public Representative Officer Disqualification Act (PRODA) 1949.
 Elective Body Disqualification Order ( EBDO) 1959
 Special Police established by FIA

2) 1980 to 1990
 Office of Wafaqi Mohtasib
 Punjab Anti-Corruption Establishment Rules 1985

3) 1990 to present
 Ehtisab Ordinance 1996
 National Accountability Bureau (1999)
 National Anti- Corruption Strategy (NACS)
 Provincial Constitutional Order.