Quote:
Originally Posted by A Civil Servant
You have asked such an ignorant question that makes me think that you are really not suited to be in civil service and won’t go very far. If you truly understand the ethics and mission of civil service, the significance and value-addedness of a good civil servant for the betterment of society, you will know that “pleasing your bosses” should never be a driver of one’s work. One must do what’s right and fair, without fear or favors, in civil service.
There are 2 books I would strongly recommend that you read if you are really invested in your own professional capacity as a civil servant. Or maybe after reading, you might realize that you aren’t actually cut out for this work and should seek other pastures. Either way, hope the reading benefits you:
1. Neither Civil Nor Servant - The Phillip Yeo Story
2. The Leader, The Teacher, and You - Lim Siong Guan
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You do not understand the relationship between the civil service and the government. Basically, only the elected government of the day has the mandate from the people to set the direction and make major decisions for the country. The civil service is just supposed to carry out the instructions given by political masters. This will cascade through the entire civil service, from HCS to PS and finally to individual civil servant. It's only right that civil servant carry out the instructions from superior carefully and dutifully as they are not likely to have the big picture view of why something is done. If your view of a good civil servant is to challenge the overall policy direction for "ethics" and not be "pleasing to your bosses", you will be better able to play this role as an opposition lawmaker, of course, you must have the mandate of the people to do so. Otherwise, you are just suggesting that the civil service of Singapore mirrors the practices of Thailand or Japan and be the "deep state" that tries to rule the country undemocratically. Shame on you for the falsehoods you are trying to impress on an ignorant fresh grad.