Nigeria’s experience in dealing with public service ethical dilemmas

Abstract

The overarching thrust of this article is to share Nigeria’s experience in dealing with normative ethical dilemmas
towards fostering sound public service fitness and better governance. The experience indicates that these dilemmas
arise from critical relations involving “civil servants” and “political office holders”, “civil servants” and “citizens”, and
“intra-civil service”. Also, the dilemmas could take the form of either personal cost, or right-versus-right, or even a
hybrid of the former and the latter. Nigeria has adopted a framework of mechanisms for enthroning sound ethical
fitness. These mechanisms are designed to prevent ethical misconduct, and enforce ethical principles. But challenges
do arise, which can be surmounted if there exists a demonstrable commitment from the highest political authority
level; and respect for public perception, because public functionaries are stewards of public confidence and trust.
And this can be gained and maintained not only by consistently avoiding actual ethical misconduct, but also by the
public perception of same.