A main drawback of the modern government is not that policies are not established, but that the public is ignorant of what is being implemented. Espousing ambitious plans, legislating, implementing reforms and setting up institutions, but citizens are not sure how such initiatives will come about and are hardly sensitive to it or even trust it.
Good governance is not just judged from the quality of policies, but also to make the policies relatable to its constituents.
The key to successful leadership is finding the correct solutions. But finding the right answers is just half-done. The real hurdle is how to make those answers resonate with the people.
It is here that policy translation is essential. Translation is not taken in the sense that language alone is translated here. It’s transforming those difficult governmental decisions into ones that citizens can understand, review and then endorse. Public ownership of policy starts when citizens not only learn about what the government has decided to do but why it’s important for them.
Throughout the course of his legislative career and now in his role as Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila has had a flair for this relationship between policy, education of the public and implementation. Throughout his public discussions there is an emerging paradigm of leadership that positions communicating alongside executing as a key role within the process of good governance.
This view is reflected in his repeated focus on education. When he speaks about the role of education as the bedrock of competitiveness, innovative utility, and continuous economic developments, it goes beyond classroom and school. The educational system is made the channel through which citizens can develop the ability to grasp government and understand the reforms, and be actively involved in national development.
An educated society is a more productive one, and it is a more governable one, too.
His belief was expressed in the support of the student loan program, which would expand opportunities for higher education and boost the human capital of the nation in the longer term. It is also built upon his philosophy that investment in people is the key to the quality of national institutions.
These ideas mirror that of John Dewey, who says that ‘democracy thrives only when the people are sufficiently informed’. Legitimating public institutions isn’t simply through elections; it’s through ongoing relationship between government and society. The more information the citizens have, the greater the strength of democracy.
These implications for the public administration are enormous. Many times governments presume announcing a policy equals implementing a policy. It is not. No articulation of technical terms, official procedures, or official statements are enough to win the public confidence naturally. If policies are unavailable or hard to understand then citizens can become “watchers” instead of “whelmers” – this causes distance and loss of understanding to eventually become mistrust.
The more successful governments therefore move away from the use of communication as public relations and regard them as a part of government itself.
Economist Amartya Sen also believes that developing is more than just material development, it’s about an increase in people’s ability. Citizens need information and organizational capacity to comprehend, assess and participate in public decision making. Development is enhanced when people have opportunities and the mental ability to utilize these opportunities.
This changes the meaning of communication from the act of persuading to interpreting. It is not only the government’s job to explain a system of policies, it needs to bridge the gap between public policy decisions and the lives of the people. Knowledge allows ownership and with ownership implementation is strengthened.
The measure of leadership is not in what it intends but in what it does, Peter Drucker said. Policy papers can play a supportive role in society change but can’t change it alone. Progress is both interpreted and translated, public engaged, and well coordinated and well applied. Governance is effective when citizens are engaged and active not merely as passive recipients.
It is important to take care in defining participation. It is sometimes confused with just having a consultation. Citizen participation depends first and foremost on the citizens having the information they need to be able to interact with public affairs in a constructive way. Hannah Arendt stated: “The world of politics is the space for people to be united in a common capacity: that of doing things together. This involvement cannot happen if there are cracks in the interaction between institutions and the people they are for.
It’s no longer about a top-down style of leadership in modern democratic societies. It’s about providing opportunities for citizens to become familiar with government, value its leadership and to willingly support the country’s development.
It is important to remember that policy provides direction, and peoples’ understanding is what will make the difference in whether a society moves that way or not.
If future governments are able to see the difference between formulating policies and educating the public, they’ll govern better than governments that believe legislation, by itself, brings legitimacy. Not all reforms will work and not all policy will have the desired result. However, a government that contentiously justifies its actions, is transparent in goals, and establishes long-term connections between citizens and government sets the stage for credible governance.
The very best aim of the leader is not just to craft good policy. It is to make citizens aware of the need for that policy, its impact on their lives, and their part in promoting its success. This is where governance is more than management and is a true public leadership.
