The constitutional obligation on government to perform public administration efficiently and effectively

Abstract

Criticism of the deplorable or complete lack of public service is constantly voiced by South African citizens. This article deals with the constitutional directives that prescribe the way in which public administration should be exercised to deliver public service efficiently and effectively to benefit the public. The contention of this article is that, although constitutional directives place an obligation on public officials to perform public administration in a particular way, public officials do not have the knowledge they need to comply with this obligation. The article describes the executive authority and its function vis-à-vis public administration, and explains how the constitutional obligation originated in 1994 that changed the execution of public administration. An attempt is also made to point out the challenge that government has, to reshape the way public administration should be exercised, and how public officials ought to adhere to the relevant constitutional directives. Finally, the article discusses certain findings of an empirical survey which indicate that public officials do not have the necessary knowledge to implement the relevant constitutional directives to actually reshape the way in which public administration is exercised.