1 Public administration and whether it requires democracy Public administration encompasses the determination of government policies, strategies and responsibilities. In today’s democracy, there are splitting views on whether good public administration requires the enactment of democratic processes. In a democracy, the power that is yielded by public officials is harboured by the people. As a result, protagonists of the notion that public administration requires democracy argue that the will of the people surpasses the will of those in any public administration offices (Diamond, & Schultz, 2018). In this light, public administrators need to observe democracy, not as an afterthought but as an avenue to ensure that they conduct their activities according to the will of the people. In as much as public administrators should envision the will of the people and act accordingly, it is not always straightforward that such observance improves the effectiveness in which public administrators deliver their services. Public administration and democratic processes may not always be related. Public officials are forced to make tough decisions during the execution of their duties. Such choices are relative to the uniqueness of their mandate. However, appealing to the masses is not always a surety that a public administrator will execute his or her duties with optimal efficiency (Ventriss et al., 2019). As such, the actions of public administrators should not be contravened or controlled by the need to observe legitimacy or be liked by the population. Provided that their actions are within the confines of the law and that all their decisions are made to benefit the populace, with or without their approval, good public administration does not always require democracy. 2 References Diamond, J., & Schultz, D. (2018). Democracy and the teaching of public administration. Ventriss, C., Perry, J. L., Nabatchi, T., Milward, H. B., & Johnston, J. M. (2019). Democracy, Public Administration, and Public Values in an Era of Estrangement. Perspectives on Public Management and Governance, 2(4), 275-282.
