Ethics and Integrity in Service-A Presentation made to the Abia State Executive Council at a Leadership Programme under the auspices of Alpha Institute for Research in Science, Economics and Development.

Editor's Notes

• #6: GDP growth, especially in developing countries, often signifies little in terms of human life and well-being.#Human Development Index is a comparative measure of life expectancy, literacy, education, and standards of living for countries worldwide. It is a standard means of measuring well-being, especially child welfare. It is used to distinguish whether the country is a developed,developing, or under-developed country, and also to measure the impact of economic policies on quality of life. The index was developed in 1990 by Pakistani economist MahbubulHaq. Countries (almost all UN member states and a couple of special territories) fall into three broad categories based on their HDI: high, medium, and low human development. Nigeria is 25 of 50 African Countries (Medium HDI).Perhaps, one issue that most analysts gloss over or find it convenient to ignore but which has implications for Nigeria’s systemic competitiveness is the Failed States Index (FSI). Unfortunately, the world and investors do not ignore it.In 2005 when the FSI was first published, Nigeria ranked 54th in the world. The following year, 2006, its rank worsened to 22nd most failed state in the world. In 2009, it had worsened to 15th position and in 2010 and 2011, we have been rated the 14th most failed state in the world. A look at the list of the worst 35 countries (countries on red alert--- see appendix table 2 for the 2011 result) makes you take a long deep breath. (List of the worst 20 in 2011 in descending order of failure include: Somalia, Chad, Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo, Haiti, Zimbabwe, Afghanistan, Central African Republic, Iraq, Cote d’Ivoire, Guinea, Pakistan, Yemen, Nigeria, Niger, Kenya, Burundi, Myanmar, Guinea-Bissau, Ethiopia). Even Liberia (ranked 26) and Sierra Leone (ranked 30) are far better. Angola, another African oil producer improved from 43rd in 2005 to 52ndin 2011. I still cannot find any other oil producing country whose ranking worsened during the period. Sadly, it is evident that Nigeria takes the first position as the country with the highest speed of deterioration between 2005 and 2011.
• #7: The Inter-Parliamentary Union, a Geneva, Switzerland-based group, says every parliament should be representative, transparent, accessible, accountable and effective. But the lawmakers that peopled the nation’s legislative assemblies nationwide lacked any of the five characteristics. The National Assembly instituted in June 2007, very much like those of 1999-2003 and 2003-2007, opted for class interest, completely detached itself from the electorate and failed to provide the required checks and balances in a presidential system. To sustain their jumbo pay, the National Assembly members ensured that year in year out, Appropriation Bills were sufficiently padded to guarantee sufficient funds for their luxury – a factor largely responsible for the current stalemate over Budget 2011. On November 28, 2010, at Igbinedion University, Okada, Edo State, the Central Bank of Nigeria Governor, LamidoSanusi, revealed that 25 per cent of the Federal Government’s expenditure on overheads is consumed by the unproductive parliament. A Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Prof. ItseSagay, provided facts and figures on the ridiculous salaries and allowances of the federal lawmakers. According to him, “In 2009, a senator earned N240 million [$1.7 million] in salaries and allowances, while his House of Representatives counterpart earned N203 million [$1.45 million.” In sharp contrast, a United States senator earns $174,000 per annum, while a British parliamentarian earns $64,000. It mattered little to Nigeria’s lawmakers that the National Minimum Wage since 2003 was N7, 500 per month at the federal level and N5, 500 per month in the states. They were unconcerned that over 70 per cent of Nigeria’s population live below the poverty line, on less than N300 a day, and that some 15 million Nigerian children of school age are unable to receive formal education because their parents are very poor. 
• #8: The disconnect is so bad that the people no longer care!Their key areas of concern over the next 12 months are the supply of electricity and unemployment, with between 19-23% citing these as concerns; while crime (5%) and corruption (3.5%) are seen as far less concerning.Yet 75% of middle-class Nigerians are optimistic about the future of Nigeria. This is not surprising although it has nothing to do do with the people’s faith in government. On the contrary, it hasmore to do with faith in God. 96% of Nigerians surveyed consider themselves religious and the 3rd most cited reason for optimism about the future of Nigeria is that “God will make it better”!
• #9: The Inter-Parliamentary Union, a Geneva, Switzerland-based group, says every parliament should be representative, transparent, accessible, accountable and effective. But the lawmakers that peopled the nation’s legislative assemblies nationwide lacked any of the five characteristics. The National Assembly instituted in June 2007, very much like those of 1999-2003 and 2003-2007, opted for class interest, completely detached itself from the electorate and failed to provide the required checks and balances in a presidential system. To sustain their jumbo pay, the National Assembly members ensured that year in year out, Appropriation Bills were sufficiently padded to guarantee sufficient funds for their luxury – a factor largely responsible for the current stalemate over Budget 2011. On November 28, 2010, at Igbinedion University, Okada, Edo State, the Central Bank of Nigeria Governor, LamidoSanusi, revealed that 25 per cent of the Federal Government’s expenditure on overheads is consumed by the unproductive parliament. A Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Prof. ItseSagay, provided facts and figures on the ridiculous salaries and allowances of the federal lawmakers. According to him, “In 2009, a senator earned N240 million [$1.7 million] in salaries and allowances, while his House of Representatives counterpart earned N203 million [$1.45 million.” In sharp contrast, a United States senator earns $174,000 per annum, while a British parliamentarian earns $64,000. It mattered little to Nigeria’s lawmakers that the National Minimum Wage since 2003 was N7, 500 per month at the federal level and N5, 500 per month in the states. They were unconcerned that over 70 per cent of Nigeria’s population live below the poverty line, on less than N300 a day, and that some 15 million Nigerian children of school age are unable to receive formal education because their parents are very poor. 
• #10: 177 states were included in the list, of which 35 were classified as "alert", 88 as "warning", 40 as "moderate", 11 as "sustainable". The worst 20 states are shown below. Change in rank from 2010 is shown in parentheses. There was a tie between Myanmar and Guinea Bissau for 18th. [34]Failed States IndexSee also: List of countries by Failed States IndexSince 2005 the United States think-tank Fund for Peace and the magazine Foreign Policy, publishes an annual index called the Failed States Index. The list only assesses sovereign states (determined by membership in the United Nations.)[5] Several territories are excluded until their political status and UN membership is ratified in international law. For example, Taiwan, the Palestinian Territories, Northern Cyprus,Kosovo, and Western Sahara are not included in the list, even though some are recognized as sovereign states by some nations. Ranking is based on the total scores of the 12 indicators (see below.) For each indicator, the ratings are placed on a scale of 0 to 10, with 0 being the lowest intensity (most stable) and 10 being the highest intensity (least stable). The total score is the sum of the 12 indicators and is on a scale of 0-120.[5][edit]Indicators of state vulnerabilityThe index's ranks are based on twelve indicators of state vulnerability - four social, two economic and six political.[6] The indicators are not designed to forecast when states may experience violence or collapse. Instead, they are meant to measure a state's vulnerability to collapse or conflict. All countries in the red (Alert, FSI of 90 or more), orange (Warning, FSI of 60 or more), or yellow (Moderate, FSI of 30 or more) categories display some features that make parts of their societies and institutions vulnerable to failure. Some in the yellow zone may be failing at a faster rate than those in the more dangerous orange or red zones, and therefore could experience violence sooner. Conversely, some in the red zone, though critical, may exhibit some positive signs of recovery or be deteriorating slowly, giving them time to adopt mitigating strategies.[5][edit]Social indicatorsDemographic pressures: including the pressures deriving from high population density relative to food supply and other life-sustaining resources. The pressure from a population's settlement patterns and physical settings, including border disputes, ownership or occupancy of land, access to transportation outlets, control of religious or historical sites, and proximity to environmental hazards.[7]Massive movement of refugees and internally displaced peoples: forced uprooting of large communities as a result of random or targeted violence and/or repression, causing food shortages, disease, lack of clean water, land competition, and turmoil that can spiral into larger humanitarian and security problems, both within and between countries.[8]Legacy of vengeance-seeking group grievance: based on recent or past injustices, which could date back centuries. Including atrocities committed with impunity against communal groups and/or specific groups singled out by state authorities, or by dominant groups, for persecution or repression. Institutionalized political exclusion. Public scapegoating of groups believed to have acquired wealth, status or power as evidenced in the emergence of "hate" radio, pamphleteering and stereotypical or nationalistic political rhetoric.[9]Chronic and sustained human flight: both the "brain drain" of professionals, intellectuals and political dissidents and voluntary emigration of "the middle class." Growth of exile/expatriate communities are also used as part of this indicator.[10][edit]Economic indicatorsUneven economic development along group lines: determined by group-based inequality, or perceived inequality, in education, jobs, and economic status. Also measured by group-based poverty levels, infant mortality rates, education levels.[11]Sharp and/or severe economic decline: measured by a progressive economic decline of the society as a whole (using: per capita income, GNP, debt, child mortality rates, poverty levels, business failures.) A sudden drop in commodity prices, trade revenue, foreign investment or debt payments. Collapse or devaluation of the national currency and a growth of hidden economies, including the drug trade, smuggling, and capital flight. Failure of the state to pay salaries of government employees and armed forces or to meet other financial obligations to its citizens, such as pension payments.[12][edit]Political indicatorsCriminalization and/or delegitimisation of the state: endemic corruption or profiteering by ruling elites and resistance to transparency, accountability and political representation. Includes any widespread loss of popular confidence in state institutions and processes.[13]Progressive deterioration of public services: a disappearance of basic state functions that serve the people, including failure to protect citizens from terrorism and violence and to provide essential services, such as health, education, sanitation, public transportation. Also using the state apparatus for agencies that serve the ruling elites, such as the security forces, presidential staff, central bank, diplomatic service, customs and collection agencies.[14]Widespread violation of human rights: an emergence of authoritarian, dictatorial or military rule in which constitutional and democratic institutions and processes are suspended or manipulated. Outbreaks of politically inspired (as opposed to criminal) violence against innocent civilians. A rising number of political prisoners or dissidents who are denied due process consistent with international norms and practices. Any widespread abuse of legal, political and social rights, including those of individuals, groups or cultural institutions (e.g., harassment of the press, politicization of the judiciary, internal use of military for political ends, public repression of political opponents, religious or cultural persecution.)[15]Security apparatus as ‘state within a state’: an emergence of elite or praetorian guards that operate with impunity. Emergence of state-sponsored or state-supported private militias that terrorize political opponents, suspected "enemies," or civilians seen to be sympathetic to the opposition. An "army within an army" that serves the interests of the dominant military or political clique. Emergence of rival militias, guerilla forces or private armies in an armed struggle or protracted violent campaigns against state security forces.[16]Rise of factionalised elites: a fragmentation of ruling elites and state institutions along group lines. Use of aggressive nationalistic rhetoric by ruling elites, especially destructive forms of communal irredentism or communal solidarity (e.g., "ethnic cleansing", "defending the faith").[17]Intervention of other states or external factors: military or Paramilitary engagement in the internal affairs of the state at risk by outside armies, states, identity groups or entities that affect the internal balance of power or resolution of the conflict. Intervention by donors, especially if there is a tendency towards over-dependence on foreign aid or peacekeeping missions.[18]
• #45: Establish an Ethics and Governance Policy for the company, through discussions within thesenior management team; benchmark it with the policies of best-practice organisations. Write itout in plain, easy to understand language.Publish the Policy, along with a Code of Conduct for the employees. Illustrate the codewith typical examples of what the employee should do, when faced with day-to-day ethicaldilemmas. In other words, demystify official jargon, and make the policy user-friendly.Communicate the policy widely and repeatedly. Start all meetings with a slide on it; holdrefresher training programmes; get all employees to sign; and make it part of the newemployee orientation.Encourage dialogue and challenge, in order to improve understanding and "ownership" ofthe policy at an individual level.Come down hard on the cynics.Set the example from the top; practice the policy consistently and visibly. This is critical,the ultimate fate of the policy depends on this.Circulate the policy amongst customers and suppliers. This will make it easier for theemployees to follow the policy.Establish an Ethics Hotline which is secure, confidential and available to all employees.Someone senior should handle this hotline, with direct reporting to the CEO; alternatively, itcould be the CEO's office itself.Take swift and fair action on reported violations, after due verification.Review the policy at regular intervals, to make sure it stays current with changingregulatory and market requirements.
• #53: Sarbanes-Oxley is An Act to protect investors by improving the accuracy and reliability of corporate disclosures made pursuant to the securities laws, and for other purposes.
• #60: crisis is contained and manageable, winding to its conclusion in relatively short order. (UK Riots, Post-election Riots, epidemics, floods, Chile Mines Collapse)Other times, the crisis is deep, long-lasting and existential. (eg Global Financial Crisis)
• #66: In some instances, an organisation may even grow in public esteem if it takes ownership of a problem and acts decisively to resolve it. By contrast, organisations that deny problems, try to shift blame, or just seem confused in their response compound their crisis by adding self-inficted damage, especially in the early stages when public attention is the keenest.
• #69: Whatever the roots, crises tend to unfold in predictable stages – from denial to anger to blame shifing to acceptance – even as we struggle to fnd a fix. With proper preparation and effective response, crises can be overcome and may even change organizations for the better.
• #71: At its most basic level, ethics can be defined as choosing between right and wrong. Organisations in crisis may begin their response with a pledge to “do the right thing.” But when the crisis team faces specifc decision points, identifying the “right thing” is ofen a complex challenge that in- volves sorting out conficting responsibilities to a wide range of stakeholders.e.g. US Govt decision to target for killing its own citizen Al-Awalaki
• #72: Ethics pertains to situations where “the right thing to do” is in question, and the outcome of the decision afects other people. Because everyanswer in a crisis has an impact on others, every question is at least partly about ethics. Organisational Leaders can play a decisive role by resolving key ethics questions or, at least, setting the parameters for management.And, it’s a good idea for a board to address these questions in advance – in a calm environment rather than amid the turmoil and time pressure that can dominate when a crisis hits.Presumably, the organisation has a crisis plan and has generally identifed the core team that will take day-to-day responsibility for managing a crisis. Organisations shouldidentify in advance competent professionals from core functions such as communications/information, legal and human resources when assembling the team. But crisis situations add a level of stress and public pressure that is ofen unmatched by other challenges. Team members also must be prepared to apply the organisation’s core value and act as ethicists in a pressure cooker environment. Ethics and values may fall to the wayside unless members of the crisis team have the mindset, personal character and training to bring ethics into the discussion.To avoid problems, organisational leaders should encourage the establishment of a crisis team that can focus to the big picture and draw individual team members out of functional silos, so that the impact of decisions can be considered in a larger context.
• #74: Values come to the fore in crisis when they can guide responses and help defne priorities. For example, what’s most important -- shareholder expectations or service to customers? In a crisis, will the company emphasize problem solving or limiting legal liability? If a crisis reduces proftability will the company care more about maintaining jobs or cutting costs? How will we choose when stakeholders have clashing interests?
• #76: Many voices emerge – some loudly – when a crisis unfolds. It is essential for a crisis team to know which stakeholder groups are most important, so that they can weigh carefully the impact of their decisions on each group. When troublesurfaces, many interest groups will have a stake.An organisation in crisis will want to live up to its stakeholders’ expectations and honor their interests. These groups have tied their own future to the organisation. They have a stake and the way the crisis plays out has implications for them.Recognising that stakeholders may have competing interest and conflicting views about values that should guide the organisation’s decisions, Leaders can set the stage for crisismanagement by considering stakeholder expectations. Answering the broad questions on the next slide can guide response to the stakeholder views that will come up during a crisis.
• #78: In a crisis, confdent employees can be anorganisation’s best advocates; dissatisfed or distrustful employees, however, can be the worst enemy. The growing power of social media and text messaging, which provides a platform for employees to share their perspective with a wide audience, greatly amplifes employees’ impact, and creates both opportunity and risk.In preparing for crisis, therefore, leaders should ask how the organisation’s people will respond. One important aspect of that discussion is the prevailing culture. In organisations with strong ethical cultures, employees are more likely to rally behind their leaders because of their confdence that the organization aims to do things the right way – following the right values and working hard to serve customers and other stakeholders. e.g. the japanese.
• #80: Recovering from crisis is a lengthy process. Determining when reputational recovery is complete is as much an art as science, but there are some important signs. From an ethics perspective, these can include those listed above.Before a crisis, boards and senior executives should consider the indicators of company health under normal circumstances, and the most important metrics that should be monitored during and afer a crisis occurs.Like it or not, organisations in crisis also may have to consider how their decisions affect the rest of society because crises can lead to new laws, tighter regulations, and greater public scrutiny for all. Yet these situations can also be an opportunity to position an organisation as a leader of learning; helping to educate peers, legislators, policymakers and the future leaders of the organisation.
• #82: The odds of successful management of a crisis increase when an organization has built a foundation of trustamong external groups who will, at the least, listen with an open mind when problems arise. Participation in community events, supporting local organizations, and establishing working relationships with civic leaders as a normal part of doing business can open doors during a crisis. Leaders should insist that such activities take place regularly. Organisations should also develop trusting relationships with customers, partners, vendors, suppliers, etc.While a company cannot expect third parties to act as apologists, building a reputation for ethical performance may earn an organization the beneft of the doubt. An organization with a reservoir of good will is likely to be accorded a bit more time to correct the problem in a crisis. When a company lacks that foundation, key audiences are more likely to view it with skepticism and even assume it has acted improperly. While the ultimateoutcome will depend on the way an organisation responds to the crisis itself, the leaders can pre-position it by building a firewall of credibility.
• #83: A crisis will necessarily require real-time analysis that accounts for specifc circumstances. But taking the time to establish priorities beforehand provides the basis for smart thinking later.The following should be undertaken as soon as possible, before a crisis:1. Establish/Review Core values. Be sure that the values you expect to govern daily organisational conduct will also guide your crisis team during a difcult time. Test understanding of the values to be sure that they will shed a positive light on the organisation when they are held up as a yardstick to measure your company response to crisis.2. Conduct periodic ethics training for employees identifed to serve on a crisis team. Members of the crisis team should receive specialized training on the ethicsquestions that come up during crisis (in addition to regular training provided by the organisation to all employees). This special training should address ways to make ethical decisions while under extreme pressure, and it should highlight the resourcesavailable to the crisis team if they are in need of an independent perspective. This training should be conducted periodically so that team members are very familiar with the core values of the organisation and how they apply to crisis management.3. Conduct a comprehensive stakeholder review. Most efforts to assess perspectives of organisational ethics and compliance focus on leaders, senior managers and employees. Customers, vendors and suppliers also have strong perceptions of an organisation’s ethics, and these views should be ascertained now while the organisation is not in crisis. Additionally, gather information about the values that stakeholders expect will guide the organisation’s response to crisis.4. Review crisis communications plans and outline ethics-related messages. When stakeholders and employees understand how the values of an organization factor into policy decisions, they are more likely to accept the outcome of diffcult decisions and trust the decision-maker. Crisis communications are opportunetimes for spokespeople to highlight the ways that the core values of the organization are important to decision-making, but most spokespeople are not immediately prepared to articulate values in this context. Crisis communications plans should outline key messages that incorporate organizational values, so that spokespeoplehave a ready reference to utilize.
• #84: 5.Conduct a culture assessment. Te best way to understand how employees will react to a crisis is to understand your organisation’s culture during normal circumstances, and the extent to which they feel valued and supported by the organization. To what extent do people perceive leaders as models of integrity? How comfortable areemployees in raising bad news? To what extent do the values of the organization really matter in daily business? Surveys of employee attitudes and focus groups also can be valuable in identifying how employees expect their peers will react to sudden change, and the best mechanisms for showing support to employees during difficult circumstances. 6. Make systematic “deposits in the credibility bank.” Build relationships with key external audiences, including elected officials, civic groups, community leaders,and the media, as well as direct stakeholders. By living out core values through good governance and helping enhance your communities, you demonstrate that you live your values, not just talk about that. These deposits in the credibility bank can pay important dividends in a crisis or other distruptive event in the form of good will. When an organisation has good standingin the community, external groups will be more likely to wish it well and support it during a crisis. Even gaining the neutrality of a group that might otherwise be a critic can be invaluable.7. Plan to be a thought leader if crisis occurs.It is essential to establish a process for a thoughtful post-mortem – not to assign blame, but to learn from the past and move forward efectively. Looking back on crisis, determining what caused it, how the organisation managed the crisis, how to avoid a repeat, and sharing the lessons with others can enable an organisation to beneft from the turmoil. Recovery cannot be truly complete until a post-mortem that helps the organisation learn. Organisations should plan external activity from launching a new communication campaign to sharing lessons learned from the crises with industry peers. 8. Have additional resources “on the ready.” Identify the resources that should be prepared to assist the crisis team. Ensure that crisis team is aware of these resources and their capabilities. Some additional resources that should be considered include the ethics/compliance office, communications department, outside counsel, and/or a public relations expert.