Homework Lance
Public Officials
Name
Professor
Institution
Course
Date
Public Officials
Public officials at all levels of the government are frequently criticized for making shortsighted decisions and I tend to think that the criticism is warranted. There are various reasons why this criticism is justified. First, these public officials unlike the private sector officials, they work for the public who are not involved or even aware of the decisions that are made that directly impact their lives. This means that the public does not have leverage over them to compel them to make long-term decisions. Secondly, most of these public officials must act loyal to the ruling government of the day. This hinders them from making long term decisions that exceed the term of the ruling government. In addition, the ruling government may only agree to fund them up to the end of their term hence short term decisions. The solution for this problem is to ensure that the public is made aware of the decisions to be made that directly impact their lives and be involved in the decision making process.
The criticism that elected officials look forward as far as the next election and place narrow, parochial interests above the general welfare is justified especially on the members the House of Representatives. This is due to the fact that these members only serve for two years and then seek re-election every even year. This means that these members are likely to make short term decisions (fixes) which they will use as claim to seek re-election. This means that they are mainly focused on winning for themselves through re-election rather than focusing on the interests of their constituents. The solution to this problem is that their terms should be increased to about four years or so. This would help them to act on issues that are more concerned about the future rather than just the present short term objectives of re-election.
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