Ethical Leadership Decadence of Good Governance Failures in South African Public Service

Abstract

The study examined the Ethical Leadership Decadence and good governance failures in South African Public Service. According to the study, the global crisis has influenced the South African economy because it is interwoven into the global economy. African governments have exploited their strengths, fiscal possibilities, financial regulatory frameworks, and labour and institutional ingenuity to meet the crisis's issues. Studies indicates that the environment and culture influence the ethical behaviour of individuals in their workplace. People tend to modify their ethical orientations to the behaviour of those they observe amongst their leaders in the organization. It is therefore, critical for leaders to take active steps in fostering an ethical environment and culture in government institutions. The purpose of this article is to evaluate the issues that ethical leadership faces in light of the global crisis and to ask whether a simple response to the crisis without a purposeful ethical emphasis is sufficient for maintaining an effective and efficient public service. The method used is a critical qualitative examination of the current literature on the subject. The study concluded that the present administration must restructure the functioning of public organizations, develop sound whistleblowing systems to prevent corruption, and encourage public managers to act ethically when serving the public. As a result, the implications of this study emphasize good governance principles such as openness, accountability, and ethics, which are major determinants of effective public service delivery.