Session 16 Dangers of bureaucracy

Bureaucracies are known for many roles. Some deem them as a rational organization while others believe it is a rule by officials. Some say it is a public administration while others claim it is an organizational inefficiency in the modern society. Throughout the world, one thing is in common; bureaucracy is a system of administration for any kind of state. This core function being to implement and execute policies of the state and thus to administer government business. It has a distinct and definitive policy implementing role that is different from policy making role of governments. They are not mere functionaries, for they do have certain discretion over “how” to administer these policies, and the degree of political control over them differs in every state and as policy advisers, civil servants do have a hand in shaping the policies of the state.As policy advisers, civil servants end up having two functions; outlining policy options available to the policy makers and to review proposals in terms of their impacts and consequences. And as decisions are based solely on the information available, the bureaucracy has quoted a stronghold on shaping the direction in which policies are made by altering the information they provide and amateur politicians mostly depend on professional bureaucratic advisers. With this, we see that the government can end up being nothing more than a puppet in place with the bureaucracy doing both roles: indirectly making policies and directly implementing them as it wills. The government can therefore become a replaceable and unnecessary or just a ceremonial position while the bureaucracy actually runs the state body. The bureaucracy also informally may articulate or aggregate interests of client groups and a nexus may develop when superpowers in the economy could interfere with government policies such that their interests determine the direction of policies when certain industries end up controlling the bureaucracy. So the bureaucracy is actually a vital tool that if falls under the pressure of wrong hands, can be used disastrously. Its final function is to act as a political stabilizer as it is a continuous body. This permanence, can be quite lethal as if there is a breach in public scrutiny and accountability, this pure system can ultimately fall prey to corruption and nepotism and end up declaring itself as custodian of the sate’s interest if it grows too powerful.